In a recent development, Pavel Prigozhin, the son of the founder of the private military company (PMC) “Wagner,” has been appointed as the leader of the Wagner Group within the Russian National Guard, according to reports from 59.ru. This move signifies that the Wagner Group has now been incorporated into the Russian National Guard and has become one of its divisions.
Currently, there is also a recruitment drive for volunteers to join the Wagner Group. However, it is worth noting that only individuals with civilian backgrounds are being considered, and those with criminal records are excluded from the selection process, as stated by a representative of the organization.
On August 23, a business jet belonging to Wagner’s founder, Yevgeny Prigozhin, crashed near the town of Kuzhenkino in the Tver region while en route from Moscow to St. Petersburg. The names of the individuals on board the aircraft were released by the Russian Federal Air Transport Agency (Rosaviation), which included Yevgeny Prigozhin himself, commanders of the Wagner Group, including Dmitry Utkin, as well as three crew members. An investigation into the plane crash in the Tver region has been initiated.
Russian President Vladimir Putin stated that, according to the investigation, there was no external interference with the entrepreneur Yevgeny Prigozhin’s aircraft. Putin also mentioned that fragments of hand grenades were found in the bodies of the victims, as per the investigation.
Earlier, Putin referred to Yevgeny Prigozhin as a “person of complex destiny and a talented businessman.”
