Social media accounts linked to Russia’s notorious Wagner Group on Thursday circulated a video clip that is reputedly the final recording of Yevgeny Prigozhin, the Wagner co-founder allegedly killed in a mysterious plane crash last week.
In the video, Priogzhin discussed “rumors” he would be eliminated for his role in leading a mutiny against the Russian military, but assured his fans that “everything is fine.”
The short video clip shows Prigozhin seated in a rapidly moving armored vehicle, which he said was speeding through Africa. He said he recorded the video for the benefit of people who are “debating if I’m dead or still alive.”
“I’m in Africa. So to those who like to spread rumors about wiping me out, my private life, my income or something like that I can say: everything is fine,” he said.
Prigozhin said he was recording this message on a “weekend” in the “second half of August 2023,” which would most likely mean before the August 23 plane crash en route to Moscow that reportedly killed him along with Wagner co-founder Dmitry Utkin, several top Wagner commanders, two pilots, and a flight attendant.
Some Wagner fans nevertheless speculated the video means Prigozhin is still alive today. A popular conspiracy theory holds that his “body double” died in the plane crash so that Prigozhin could either disappear into retirement with Russian leader Vladimir Putin’s blessing or secretly plot revenge against those who tried to liquidate him.
Grey Zone, the Wagner-linked channel on the Telegram messaging platform that appears to have posted the video first, did not say when or where it was filmed.
Grey Zone also posted some of Prigozhin’s allegedly final photos from Africa, including one that showed him standing with a group of black men in what was supposedly the Central African Republic (CAR) shortly before he flew back to Russia on what the Russian government claimed was his final journey.
Journalists noticed Prigozhin’s camouflage clothing and watch are identical to his attire in the video from Africa he released on August 21, his first video message since his aborted mutiny in June. In that earlier clip, Prigozhin said Wagner was “recruiting real heroes” to help make “Africa even more free.”
Prigozhin’s remains were purportedly buried on Tuesday in a private service at the Porokhovskoye cemetery in his hometown of St. Petersburg. The Russian government spread false reports of other locations to prevent a crowd from assembling at the funeral.
“The funeral ceremony was held behind closed doors, with only close relatives and friends of Prigozhin in attendance. The exact location of the Wagner chief’s tomb has yet to be confirmed, but his media team said everyone was welcome to visit it at the graveyard,” Russian state media claimed.
On Monday, Russian intelligence officer Gen. Andrey Averyanov was appointed to replace Prigozhin as supervisor of Wagner’s lucrative operations in Africa.
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