Hours before the plane crash, news about the fate of another senior Russian figure emerged from Russian state media.
Gen. Sergei Surovikin, a top general who has been missing from public view since the mercenary rebellion, was dismissed as head of the country’s aerospace forces, Russian state media reported Wednesday.
The news followed months of speculation about Surovikin, who was known to have been close to Prigozhin.
Yevgeny Prigozhin was listed as one of 10 people aboard the plane involved in Wednesday's deadly crash north of Moscow, according to Russia's aviation authorities.
But the Kremlin itself, and most notably Russian president Vladimir Putin, has so far been silent on the dramatic incident.
The fate of the mercenary chief — once a close ally of Putin before he clashed with Moscow's military leadership then launched his aborted mutiny — will now hang over Russia's elite.
The original article contains 148 words, the summary contains 143 words. Saved 3%. I'm a bot and I'm open source!