In an official declaration, Russian investigative authorities have conclusively verified the demise of Yevgeny V. Prigozhin, the enigmatic commander of the Wagner mercenary faction. Through meticulous genetic testing, it has been established that the individuals tragically lost in the recent plane crash are unequivocally aligned with the names meticulously recorded on the aircraft’s manifest.
Mr. Prigozhin’s fate was widely speculated following the aviation catastrophe that transpired last Wednesday, an event following his ill-fated insurrection against the hierarchical echelons of Russia’s military command. A prevailing belief among U.S. and Western officials suggests the plane’s detonation was responsible for the calamity. Despite this, Russian authorities conscientiously deferred confirmation of the victims’ identities, pending a comprehensive investigation’s resolution.
In a communiqué disseminated on the Telegram messaging platform, Svetlana Petrenko, spokesperson for Russia’s investigative committee, definitively stated that the individuals constituting the 10 deceased occupants were unequivocally identified and corresponded with the roster outlined in the flight documentation.
President Vladimir V. Putin, who had hitherto refrained from confirming Mr. Prigozhin’s passing, offered a veiled allusion to his death in the past tense during his recent statement on the matter. “He made some serious mistakes in life, but he also achieved necessary results,” President Putin remarked in a nuanced acknowledgment of Mr. Prigozhin’s complex legacy.
Speculation within certain quarters has hinted at potential geopolitical motives behind Mr. Prigozhin’s demise. Various European leaders, numerous Western media outlets, and those within the inner circle of Mr. Prigozhin’s Wagner paramilitary group have intimated that the orchestrating hand of President Putin was at play, exacting retribution for Mr. Prigozhin’s audacious mutiny in June. The Kremlin, however, vehemently rebuffed these conjectures, branding them an “absolute lie.”
