Russian Investigators Find Bodies and Black Boxes in Plane Crash
Investigation ongoing for plane crash involving Wagner Group commander
Introduction
On Friday evening, Russian investigators said they had found the bodies of ten victims of the crash of the plane carrying Wagner Group commander Yevgeny Prigozhin, as well as two of the plane’s black boxes, which crashed on Wednesday in Russia.
The Investigative Committee of Russia reported on Telegram: “The bodies of 10 dead were found at the crash site. Genetic tests are being carried out to identify them. Investigators have seized flight recorders, and a thorough examination of the place is being carried out.”
The committee emphasized that “detailed investigations at the scene are ongoing,” adding that “important materials and documents have also been recovered to establish all the circumstances of the incident.”
The committee added that “the investigation will carefully study all versions of what happened.”
Details of the Crash
An Embraer plane intended for Prigozhin, en route from Moscow to St. Petersburg, reportedly crashed in the Russian Tver region on the evening of August 23.
Ten people were on board, all of them died. According to the Federal Air Transport Agency, the list of passengers included the founder of the private military company Wagner, Yevgeny Prigozhin.
Investigators have not disclosed the hypotheses they are working on and the possible causes of the crash, which could have included a bomb planted on board, a surface-to-air missile hitting it, or pilot error.
Speculation of Foul Play
After a plane crash near the Russian capital on Wednesday and authorities confirmed the death of ten people on board, including Prigozhin, speculation and analyzes circulated that the leader of the group, who was close to President Vladimir Putin before his armed mutiny in June, could be the victim of an assassination organized by the Kremlin as revenge for disobedience to the power of the president.
On Friday, the Kremlin denied any involvement in the incident, calling it “a pure lie.”
Putin stressed on Thursday that the investigation into the accident “will take some time,” but “it will be completed and the conclusion will be made. There is no doubt about that.”
