Back Jewgeni Prigozjin Afrikaans Eugenius Prigoscin ANG يفغيني بريغوجين Arabic ييڤڭيني پريڭوجين ARY يفجينى بريجوزين ARZ Yevgeni Priqojin Azerbaijani Пригожин Евгений Викторович Bashkir Yevgeny Prigozhin BCL Яўген Віктаравіч Прыгожын Byelorussian Яўген Прыгожын BE-X-OLD

Yevgeny Prigozhin

Yevgeny Prigozhin
Евгений Пригожин
Prigozhin in 2023
Leader of the Wagner Group
In office
22 February 2014 – 23 August 2023
Military commanderDmitry Utkin
Preceded byPosition established
Succeeded byPavel Prigozhin[1]
Personal details
Born
Yevgeny Viktorovich Prigozhin (Евгений Викторович Пригожин)

(1961-06-01)1 June 1961
Leningrad, Russian SFSR, Soviet Union
(now Saint Petersburg, Russia)
Died23 August 2023(2023-08-23) (aged 62)
Kuzhenkino, Tver Oblast, Russia
Cause of deathAirplane crash
Resting placePorokhovskoye Cemetery
SpouseLyubov Valentinovna Prigozhina
Childrenson Pavel and two daughters
EducationLeningrad Chemical and Pharmaceutical Institute (dropped out)
Awards
Nickname"Putin's chef"
Military service
AllegianceRussia
CommandsWagner Group
Battles/wars
Business information
Organizations
Criminal information
Criminal statusWanted by the FBI for electoral interference
Criminal charge
Penalty
  • Suspended sentence (1979)
  • 12-year imprisonment (served 1981–1990)

Yevgeny Viktorovich Prigozhin[a][b] (Russian: Евгений Викторович Пригожин, IPA: [jɪvˈɡʲenʲɪj ˈvʲiktərəvʲɪtɕ prʲɪˈɡoʐɨn]; 1 June 1961 – 23 August 2023) was a Russian mercenary leader and oligarch.[5] He led the Wagner Group private military company and was a close confidant of Russian president Vladimir Putin until launching a rebellion in June 2023.[6] Prigozhin was sometimes referred to as "Putin's chef" because he owned restaurants and catering businesses that provided services to the Kremlin.[7] Once a convict in the Soviet Union,[8] Prigozhin controlled a network of influential companies whose operations, according to a 2020 investigation, were "tightly integrated with Russia's Defence Ministry and its intelligence arm, the GRU".[9]

In 2014, Prigozhin reportedly founded the Wagner Group[10][11][12] to support pro-Russian paramilitaries in Ukraine. Funded by the Russian state, it played a significant role in Russia's invasion of Ukraine and supported Russian interests in Syria and in Africa. In November 2022, Prigozhin acknowledged his companies' interference in United States elections.[13] In February 2023, he confirmed that he was the founder and long-time manager of the Internet Research Agency, a Russian company running online propaganda and disinformation campaigns.

Prigozhin's companies and associates, and formerly Prigozhin himself, are subject to economic sanctions and criminal charges in the United States[14] and the United Kingdom.[15] In October 2020, the European Union (EU) imposed sanctions against Prigozhin for his financing of the Wagner Group's activities in Libya. In April 2022, the EU imposed further sanctions on him for his role in the Russian invasion of Ukraine.[16] The FBI offered a reward of up to $250,000 for information leading to Prigozhin's arrest.[17][18]

Prigozhin openly criticized the Russian Defense Ministry for corruption and mishandling the war against Ukraine. Eventually, he said the reasons they gave for invading were lies.[19] On 23 June 2023, he launched a rebellion against the Russian military leadership. Wagner forces captured Rostov-on-Don and advanced toward Moscow.[20] The rebellion was called off the following day, and the criminal charges against Prigozhin were dropped after he agreed to relocate his forces to Belarus.[21] On 23 August 2023, exactly two months after the rebellion,[22] Prigozhin was killed along with nine other people when a business jet crashed in Tver Oblast, north of Moscow.[23] The Wall Street Journal cited sources within the US government as saying that the crash was likely caused by a bomb on board or "some other form of sabotage".[24][25] Since then, researchers and other analysts have reached the conclusion that an on-board bomb or explosive likely downed the plane.[26][27][28][29]

  1. ^ Nanu, Maighna (2 October 2023). "Yevgeny Prigozhin's son 'takes over command of Wagner'". The Telegraph. Retrieved 15 October 2023.
  2. ^ Myre, Greg (30 January 2019). "'Putin's Chef' Has His Fingers In Many Pies, Critics Say". NPR. Archived from the original on 4 February 2021. Retrieved 26 February 2021.
  3. ^ Maglov, Mikhail; Olevsky, Timur; Treshchanin, Dmitry (27 February 2019). "Investigation Charts Massive Haul For State Deals By Companies Linked To 'Putin's Chef'". Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty. Archived from the original on 29 March 2021. Retrieved 26 February 2021.
  4. ^ Eltagouri, Marwa (17 February 2018). "The rise of 'Putin's chef,' the Russian oligarch accused of manipulating the U.S. election". The Washington Post. ISSN 0190-8286. Archived from the original on 27 February 2021. Retrieved 26 February 2021.
  5. ^ Lister, Tim; Ilyushina, Mary; Shukla, Sebastian (18 February 2018). "The oil field carnage that Moscow doesn't want to talk about". CNN. Archived from the original on 18 February 2018. Retrieved 24 February 2018.
  6. ^ "Navalny asks FSB to investigate Putin's cook". Crime Russia. Archived from the original on 1 March 2019. Retrieved 16 February 2018.
  7. ^ "Thousands of Russian private contractors fighting in Syria". AP News. Archived from the original on 29 December 2021. Retrieved 12 December 2017.
  8. ^ "Право на забвение Евгения Пригожина: Что хочет скрыть о себе ресторатор, обслуживавший президентов России – Meduza". Meduza (in Russian). Archived from the original on 29 December 2021. Retrieved 25 October 2017.
  9. ^ Bellingcat Investigation Team (14 August 2020). "Putin Chef's Kisses of Death: Russia's Shadow Army's State-Run Structure Exposed". Bellingcat. Archived from the original on 14 August 2020. Retrieved 23 August 2020.
  10. ^ "Sanctioned Putin Ally Says He Created Russian Mercenary Group". Bloomberg. 26 September 2022. Archived from the original on 27 September 2022. Retrieved 26 September 2022.
  11. ^ "Russian oligarch Yevgeny Prigozhin admits he created the mercenary Wagner Group". Politico. 26 September 2022. Archived from the original on 26 September 2022. Retrieved 26 September 2022.
  12. ^ "Putin's 'chef' Prigozhin admits creating Wagner mercenary outfit in 2014". CNN. 26 September 2022. Archived from the original on 16 January 2023. Retrieved 26 September 2022.
  13. ^ "Russia's Prigozhin admits interfering in U.S. Elections". Reuters. 7 November 2022. Archived from the original on 17 November 2022. Retrieved 17 November 2022.
  14. ^ William Echols (4 October 2019). "New Sanctions Against 'Putin's Chef' Prompt Latest Russian Election Meddling Denial". Polygraph.info. Archived from the original on 5 October 2019. Retrieved 5 October 2019.
  15. ^ Fitzpatrick, Jim (7 February 2023). "MPs grill minister over decision to let warlord sue reporter". openDemocracy. Archived from the original on 8 February 2023. Retrieved 9 February 2023.
  16. ^ "Switzerland Imposed Sanctions on Wagner Group". European Pravda. Archived from the original on 27 April 2023. Retrieved 24 June 2023.
  17. ^ Cite error: The named reference FBI-2021 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  18. ^ Cite error: The named reference :14 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  19. ^ "Wagner chief accuses Moscow of lying to public about Ukraine". The Guardian. 23 June 2023. Archived from the original on 23 June 2023. Retrieved 24 August 2023.
  20. ^ Trofimov, Yaroslav (23 June 2023). "Russia Issues Arrest Warrant for Wagner Chief on Charges of Mutiny". Wall Street Journal. ISSN 0099-9660. Archived from the original on 23 June 2023. Retrieved 24 June 2023.
  21. ^ Chernova, Anna (24 June 2023). "Case against Prigozhin will be dropped and he will be sent to Belarus, Kremlin spokesperson says". CNN. Archived from the original on 30 June 2023. Retrieved 24 June 2023.
  22. ^ Russell, Graham (24 August 2023). "Biden points finger at Putin as Prigozhin's reported death seen as a warning to 'elites'". The Guardian. Archived from the original on 24 August 2023. Retrieved 24 August 2023.
  23. ^ Gardner, Frank; Greenall, Robert; Lukiv, Jaroslav (23 August 2023). "Wagner chief Yevgeny Prigozhin presumed dead after Russia plane crash". BBC News. Archived from the original on 23 August 2023. Retrieved 23 August 2023.
  24. ^ Cite error: The named reference Troianovski_Barnes_Schmitt_8/24/2023 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  25. ^ Court, Elsa (24 August 2023). "WSJ: US officials do not believe air defense shot down Prigozhin plane". The Kyiv Independent. Archived from the original on 25 August 2023. Retrieved 24 August 2023.
  26. ^ Haworth, Jon; Martinez, Luis; Chile, Patricio; Winsor, Morgan; Margolin, Josh (25 August 2023). "Bomb likely the cause of explosion that downed Wagner leader Prigozhin's plane, US officials say". ABC News. Retrieved 8 September 2023.
  27. ^ Barnes, Julian E.; Cooper, Helene; Schmitt, Eric; Mellen, Riley; Xiao, Muyi; Stein, Robin (24 August 2023). "Blast Likely Downed Jet and Killed Prigozhin, U.S. Officials Say". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 8 September 2023.
  28. ^ "US intelligence says an intentional explosion brought down Wagner chief Prigozhin's plane". AP News. 24 August 2023. Retrieved 8 September 2023.
  29. ^ Mackintosh, Eliza; Mezzofiore, Gianluca; Brown, Benjamin; Polglase, Katie; Pettersson, Henrik (25 August 2023). "Explosion likely brought down aircraft purportedly carrying Wagner boss, flight data and video analysis suggest". CNN. Retrieved 8 September 2023.


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