A previously unseen video of Wagner Group leader Yevgeny Prigozhin emerged following the mercenary chief’s funeral. The undated video, posted by Anton Gerashchenko, advisor to the minister of internal affairs of Ukraine, shows Prigozhin addressing the camera while riding in a vehicle and speaking about speculation of his death.
“To those who talk about my liquidation, private life and earnings or whatever else, strictly speaking, everything’s alright,” Yevgeny Prigozhin said in the video, adding, “For anyone discussing whether I’m alive or not and how I’m doing […] it’s a weekend in the second half of August 2023. I’m in Africa.”
Russian outlets pointed out that the uniform Yevgeny Prigozhin is wearing in the video is similar to the outfit worn in a video published on August 21 — during Wagner Group’s campaign in Africa.
The possibility of Prigozhin’s death being staged has floated since his plane was destroyed with him and several members of the Wagner Group top brass aboard on August 23. Russian president Vladimir Putin’s government said that there is no possibility of the international community to examine evidence from the crash site.
The Russian government said that the DNA testing on remains from the scene of the disaster confirmed Prigozhin’s death on the aircraft. His death comes just two months after he led an insurrection against Vladimir Putin’s regime. Then, Prigozhin expressed anger at how his forces had been used and treated and ordered a march to Moscow.
Russian officials have largely ignored widespread speculation that Vladimir Putin was behind the fatal disaster but the Kremlin has acknowledged that foul play could have played a role as the crash may have been the result of “deliberate wrongdoing.”
Prigozhin was buried in St. Petersburg, his hometown, in a private ceremony.
