Wagner Releases Video of Plane Crash That Reportedly Killed Prigozhin

A Telegram channel linked to the Wagner Group shared several videos on social media Wednesday afternoon depicting the fatal plane crash in Russia that allegedly killed Wagner leader Yevgeny Prigozhin.

Prigozhin was reportedly among the 10 passengers that were killed in the crash on Wednesday when a private business jet went down in the Tver region as it was traveling from Moscow to St. Petersburg, according to Russian state-sponsored media outlet Tass. The Russian Ministry of Emergency Situations or, internationally, EMERCOM was cited as the source confirming the crash and number of casualties. The BBC reported that Prigozhin was on the plane.

Wagner-linked Telegram channel The Grey Zone has accused Russian air defense of shooting the plane down, but Russia has not claimed responsibility for the crash.

Newsweek reached out to Russian President Vladimir Putin's press office by email for comment. The Grey Zone shared a picture of the jet and several videos on Telegram Wednesday afternoon, adding that the plane disappeared from radar shortly before it crashed.

The videos depicted different stages of the crash, with one showing the plane plummeting through the sky followed by a smoke trail. The people videoing the tragedy screamed in shock as the plane gained speed while dropping through the sky before it disappeared from view behind a line of trees. The plane appeared to be missing a wing as it fell through the sky.

Another video showed the plane on the ground as smoke billowed from the flaming wreckage. Several photos also showed the ruined plane still burning after the crash.

"The Embraer Legacy 600 business jet with registration number RA-02795, which belonged to Yevgeny Prigozhin, was shot down by air defense fire of the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation in the Bologovsky district of the Tver region," an English translation of The Grey Zone's post read.

Newsweek cannot independently verify whether Prigozhin was on the plane, and whether it was shot down by Russian military forces.

Relationships between Prigozhin and Putin grew tense this summer. Resentment from the Wagner Group regarding Russia's actions in the Russia-Ukraine war led to a short-lived mutiny in June. The mutiny caused a major rift between the Kremlin and the Wagner Group, leading to a negotiated deal between both parties that would allow Prigozhin and the mercenaries to seek refuge in Belarus.

However, Prigozhin remained in Russia.

Anton Gerashchenko, an adviser to the Minister of Internal Affairs of Ukraine, reposted a video on X, formerly Twitter, that depicted the plane falling through the sky. Eyewitnesses reported two explosions that resembled missiles firing before the plane crashed, according to the post.

The jet was burned severely, requiring a forensic medical examination to identify the bodies inside, Gerashchenko said in an earlier post.

"If Prigozhin's death is confirmed, I think we can be fairly certain Putin gave this order," Gerashchenko posted. "He did not and was not going to forgive the humiliation by Prigozhin in June."