A woman lights a candle at a makeshift memorial to Yevgeny Prigozhin, head of the Wagner mercenary group, and Dmitry Utkin, the group’s leader, in Moscow, Russia August 29, 2023. REUTERS/Maxim Shemetov Obtain licensing rights
ST PETERSBURG, Russia (Reuters) – His funeral was held privately at a cemetery on the outskirts of his hometown of St Petersburg, the press office of the Russian mercenary leader who died in a plane crash last week said. Tuesday.
A short post on the Telegram app, accompanied by Prigozhin’s photo, said: “Evgeny Viktorovich was bid farewell in private. Those who wish to bid farewell to him can visit Porokhovskoye Cemetery.”
Secrecy has surrounded the funeral arrangements for Prigozhin, who was killed in a plane crash on Aug. 23, two months after staging a rebellion in the biggest challenge to President Vladimir Putin’s rule since he came to power in 1999.
The Kremlin said earlier that Putin would not attend the funeral.
Two other Wagner VIPs, Prigozhin’s four bodyguards, and three crew members were also killed when his private Embraer Legacy 600 crashed north of Moscow.
Writing by Mark Trevelyan. Edited by John Boyle
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