Russian President Putin condoles Wagner chief's death, says 'he made some mistakes'

Russian leader Vladimir Putin has finally broken his silence overthe apparent death of Wagner chiefYevgeny Prigozhin. While expressing condolences over the plane crash, Putin said the Wagner boss was a talented man "who made mistakes."

Putin said that he had known Prigozhin for a very long time, "since the early 90s."

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He also said an investigation hasbeen initiated which will attempt to find the causes of the plane crash.

Remembering Wagner's contribution to Russia's offensive in Ukraine, Putin said Prigozhin achievedthe necessary results both for himself and for the common cause.

"As for this plane crash, first of all I want to express the words of sincere condolence to the families of all who died. It is always a tragedy. And indeed, if there were the workers of the Wagner company as the primary data says, I’d like to mention that it is people who made the significant contribution to our common cause of fighting with the neo-Nazi regime in Ukraine. We remember that, know that and will not forget," Putin said in a video message.

Prigozhin supporters pay tribute to Wagner chief

Supporters of Yevgeny Prigozhin continued arriving at the Wagner headquarters in Saint Petersburg on Thursday to pay tribute to the Russian mercenary chief who is presumed to have died in a plane crash.

They built a makeshift memorial, piling red and white flowers outside the building, along with company flags and candles.

One of them called Prigozhin a symbol of truth and resistance “to global capital and the enemies of Russia.”

Who all were aboard the plane that crashed late Wednesday?

The crashed private jet carried seven passengers and three crew members. Those were high-ranking officials of the Wagner group, including the number 2. According to Russian media, these were the people allegedly present on the plane when it crashed.

Propustin Sergey
Makaryan Evgeniy
Totmin Alexander
Chekalov Valeriy
Utkin Dmitry
Matuseev Nikolay
Prigozhin Evgeniy

Crew members:
Levshin Aleksei, commander;
Karimov Rustam, co-pilot;
Raspopova Kristina, flight attendant.

Wagner men vow to avenge Prigozhin's death

Meanwhile, some masked men have warned the Kremlin of an imminent retaliation after the death of their leader Yevgeny Prigozhin.

"There’s a lot of talk right now about what the Wagner Group will do. We can tell you one thing, we are getting started, get ready for us," the masked men warned.

Earlier it was reported that at least two regions in Russia were put on high alert after Wagner men vowed to avenge Prigozhin's death.

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