Evgueni Prigojine, the feared boss of the Wagner militia, would be among the victims after the crash of a plane carrying ten people to Russia. According to the Ria Novosti, TASS and Interfax agencies, referring to the Russian air transport agency Rossaviatsia, Yevgeny Prigojine’s name appears on the passenger list of this plane which was to connect Moscow to Saint Petersburg.
“There were 10 people on board, including 3 crew members. According to the first information, all the people on board died, ”said the Russian Ministry of Emergency Situations a little earlier on Telegram. According to him, this Embraer Legacy private plane crashed near the village of Kujenkino, in the Tver region, northwest of Moscow. “The Russian Emergency Situations Ministry is carrying out search operations,” he added.
A death that surprises no one
Videos whose authenticity AFP could not confirm were broadcast on several Telegram channels claiming to be linked to Wagner, showing burning debris in a field or a device falling from the sky. But this death is not a surprise to anyone. “We have seen what has been reported. If this were confirmed, it would not be a surprise to anyone, “said Adrienne Watson, spokeswoman for the National Security Council of the American executive. Joe Biden also said he was “not surprised”.
On the Ukrainian side, the crash is a “signal” sent by Vladimir Putin to the Russian elites. “The spectacular elimination of Prigojine and the command of Wagner two months after (their) coup attempt is a signal from Putin to the Russian elites before the 2024 elections”, affirmed on X (ex-Twitter) Mykhaïlo Podoliak , the adviser to the Ukrainian presidency, believing that “Putin does not forgive anyone”.
From rebellion to reappearance in Africa
Yevgeny Prigojine had been behind a rebellion in June against the Russian general staff and Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu, led by his men, who had briefly captured military sites in southern Russia before to go to Moscow. Evgueni Prigojine had quickly given up this mutiny, in the midst of the conflict in Ukraine. It ended on the evening of June 24 with an agreement providing for his departure to Belarus, while his fighters could join him there, enter the regular Russian army or return to civilian life.
On Monday evening, he appeared in a video posted by groups close to Wagner on social media, where he claimed to be in Africa. In a desert landscape, he said he was working to “make Russia even greater on all continents and Africa even freer”.