Wagner boss' 'exceptional security' of decoys and bodyguards 'couldn't save him'

25 August 2023 , 11:06

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Wagner boss' 'exceptional security' of decoys and bodyguards 'couldn't save him'

Wagner boss Yevgeny Prigozhin was one of the most well-protected men in Russia, routinely picking fights with generals and oligarchs while being kept safe by his own private army.

Now, as the Ministry of Defence (MoD) confirmed it is “highly likely” that the mercenary leader died in a plane crash along with some of his top officers, it looks as if all of Prigozhin’s security was not enough to stop the wrath of Vladimir Putin. Among the dead are several of the warlord’s personal bodyguards and his head of security.

Valery Chekalov, who oversees Prigozhin’s business empire and, according to Russian independent media, was in charge of Prigozhin’s travel arrangements was killed on the plane. Prigozhin is notoriously secretive and keeps his travel plans hidden at all times to prevent security risks, Chekalov was one of the only people aware of the warlord’s planned movements.

Chekalov is also understood to be in charge of Prigozhin’s personal security, a group of handpicked veteran fighters who have seen action in some of Wagner’s most gruesome campaigns. One such guard was Sergey Propustin, a Chechen war veteran who joined Wagner in 2015 - he was also killed in the crash.

Prigozhin and several top Wagner bosses died when his private jet crashed on Wednesday (TELEGRAM/ @grey_zone/AFP via Get)

As well as secrecy and muscle Prigozhin also routinely employed deception as a means of ensuring his survival, according to Marina Miron, a post-doctoral researcher in war studies at King's College London. Prigozhin had been known to use body-doubles, fake names and documents to try and keep his location secret, Dr Miron told ABC News.

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"There is a perception of [Prighozin] as a guy who is sticking his neck out against the regime and who seems to be so naive and so careless and there's much more to it," she said. "He was very well aware of his personal security and the security of his family as well ... using doubles and presenting decoys ... is a very plausible move for him."

However despite the tightest security, the UK Government has now said it is “highly likely” the warlord himself was on the plane when it crashed and has died, along with several of his top lieutenants and bodyguards.

Yevgeny Prigozhin died in a plane crash two months to the day after leading a failed mutiny against Vladimir Putin (TELEGRAM/ @concordgroup_official)

In its daily intelligence update on Friday, the MoD said: “On 23 August 2023, exactly two months after the Wagner Group ’s mutiny, a Wagner-associated Embraer business jet crashed near Tver, between Moscow and St Petersburg.

“The Russian authorities claim 10 people on board died, including Wagner owner Yevgeny Prigozhin. There is not yet definitive proof that Prigozhin was on board and he is known to exercise exceptional security measures. However, it is highly likely that he is indeed dead.”

His death “would almost certainly have a deeply destabilising effect” on his private military, with the reported deaths of Wagner’s second-in-command and logistics chief compounding a “leadership vacuum”, the MoD said on Twitter, now known as X.

Joe Smith