Yevgeny Prigozhin: Now You See Him, Now You Don’t
Photo Credit: Yulia Morozova/Reuters
Yevgeny Prigozhin was one of ten killed when his private plane crashed on Aug. 23, north of its destination in Moscow. This was exactly two months after leading a single-day insurrection against Russian President Vladimir Putin and the Kremlin.
Often called ‘Putin’s chef’, Yevgeny Prigozhin grew to be one of the most powerful people in Russia. Prigozhin rose to power as a caterer for Putin, and acquired lucrative contracts for Russian schools and the military. However, Prigozhin’s power in recent years did not come from his food production, but rather his control of the Wagner Group. The Wagner Group is a private military co-founded by Prigozhin in 2013, with the primary objective of supporting Russian troops in Ukraine during the annexation of Crimea.
The group is known for often brutal methods. The lack of complete training for their soldiers resulted in large amounts of casualties on the Russian side, according to CNN. The United States government has estimated that Wagner has approximately 50,000 personnel in Ukraine currently, including 40,000 conscripted convicts.
During the early stages of Russia’s most recent invasion of Ukraine, Prigozhin’s military quickly became a vital part of the Russian offensive. However, as large numbers of his troops died, Prigozhin became an increasingly vocal critic of Russia’s military leadership. He often spoke of the Russian military starving his troops of ammunition, and on one occasion, accused high level military officials of treason.
With tensions escalating, the conflict between the Wagner Group and the Kremlin culminated on June 23, when Prigozhin took control of the Russian city of Rostov-on-Don, a crucial military location near the Ukrainian border. He then led thousands of Wagner troops on a march towards Moscow.
During their offensive, the Associated Press reported that Prigozhin’s troops killed 15 Russian soldiers, and shot down Russian military aircraft. However, Prigozhin’s “March of Justice” was short-lived, lasting only one day. The march ended with a deal brokered by Alexander Lukashenko, the President of Belarus. The agreement stated that Prigozhin would be sent to Belarus, while the Wagner fighters who participated in the insurrection would not be prosecuted, due to their “heroic deeds at the front” that would “always be respected”, according to Russian Defense Minister Dmitri S. Peskov.
In the weeks that followed Prigozhin’s mutiny, he seemed to have escaped virtually unscathed. With many of Putin’s past critics ending up imprisoned, poisoned or worse, many speculated as to why Prigozhin, whom Putin accused of treason, was left alive.
Though Russian authorities claimed Prigozhin’s death in the plane crash was merely an accident, governments around the world have not shied away from suspecting the Kremlin’s involvement. US President Joe Biden said he was “not surprised” and that there is “not much that happens in Russia that Putin’s not behind.” Meanwhile on state news channel TPV Info, Polish Foreign Minister Zbigniew Rau said that Putin’s enemies “do not die naturally.”
On Oct. 5, Putin announced that grenade fragments were found in several bodies recovered from the crash. According to Reuters, Putin claimed he believed the grenades had been mishandled onboard the plane after the passengers became intoxicated with alcohol and cocaine. This claim has not been proven or tested, though 5 kg of cocaine was found after Russian authorities conducted a search of a Wagner building. Russia claims that this discovery should dismiss global speculation, however, as reported by Reuters, several western diplomats are still not convinced.