The Commission of Inquiry of Russia (CIR) confirmed on Sunday that Yevgueni Prigozhin was killed in a plane crash last Wednesday.
The leader of the Russian paramilitary group Wagner was on the plane that crashed in the Tver region, northwest of Moscow.
According to the CIR, the identity of the plane’s occupants was confirmed by comparative DNA analysis.
Wagner group leader Yevgeny Prigozhin dies in a Russian plane crash
“In the investigation of the plane crash in the Tver region, genetic-molecular expertise was concluded. Based on the results, the identity of the ten deceased has been established, which corresponds to the identity stated on the passenger list,” the CIR said in a statement.
In addition to Prigozhin, the list included his right-hand man, Dmitri Utkin, chief of operations of the paramilitary group, whose existence was barely acknowledged by the Kremlin at the end of 2022.
The accident took place exactly two months after Wagner staged a mutiny against Moscow’s military leadership, sparking a wave of speculation about the origin of the incident.
Western governments and opponents of Russian President Vladimir Putin hinted that the Kremlin could be behind the event.
However, the Kremlin strongly denied these allegations and the Russian president promised a “thorough” investigation into the matter on Thursday.
At the moment, the Russian investigators have not mentioned any hypotheses about the causes of the accident.
The president of Belarus, a country allied with Moscow, Alexander Lukashenko, supported the Kremlin and stated that he “could not imagine” that the Russian president would order the assassination of Wagner’s leader.
Since the plane crash, makeshift altars to Prigozhin have been erected in several cities across the country, from Novosibirsk (Western Siberia) to Saint Petersburg (Northwest).
Small memorials illustrate Prigozhin’s popularity in those areas where Wagner had training centers.
“The enemies killed him (…), but we hope that revenge will come to those who committed this crime,” a Prigozhin supporter told reporters on Sunday, outside a flower-filled memorial in Moscow. (JO)
Questions and answers from the 2023 Elections
Source: Eluniverso
Mabel is a talented author and journalist with a passion for all things technology. As an experienced writer for the 247 News Agency, she has established a reputation for her in-depth reporting and expert analysis on the latest developments in the tech industry.
