On August 23, 2023, a private jet carrying Russian businessman Yevgeny Prigozhin crashed outside Moscow, killing all 10 people on board. Prigozhin is a close ally of Russian President Vladimir Putin and the founder of the Wagner Group, a private military company that has been involved in conflicts in Ukraine, Syria, and Libya.
The cause of the crash is still under investigation, but Russian authorities have ruled out a terrorist attack. The US intelligence community has also not seen any indications that a missile downed the plane.
The plane was an Embraer Legacy 600 executive jet that was traveling from Moscow to St. Petersburg. It disappeared from radar shortly after takeoff and crashed in a wooded area near the village of Kuzhenkino.
The Russian Investigative Committee has said that the preliminary investigation suggests that the crash was caused by a technical failure. However, the US intelligence community is still assessing the evidence and has not ruled out other possibilities, such as a mechanical failure or pilot error.
The crash of Prigozhin's plane has raised a number of questions, including:
- Why was Prigozhin traveling on a private jet?
- What was the purpose of his trip?
- Who else was on the plane?
- Was the crash an accident or a deliberate act?
The Russian government has not released any information about Prigozhin's travel plans or the other passengers on the plane. However, the US intelligence community is reportedly investigating the possibility that the crash was a targeted assassination.
Conclusion:
The investigation into the crash of Prigozhin's plane is ongoing. The US intelligence community has not seen any indications that a missile downed the plane, but the possibility is still being investigated. The crash has raised a number of questions, and it is likely that the full truth about what happened will not be known for some time.
Keywords:
- US intelligence
- Prigozhin
- Wagner Group
- private jet crash
- missile
- assassination
- Russia
- Ukraine
- Syria
- Libya
- terrorism
- technical failure
- pilot error
- investigation