Russian dissident Yevgeny Prigozhin reported dead after plane crash

Russian military dissident Yevgeny Prigozhin has been reported dead in a fiery private jet crash north of Moscow — two months after his failed coup against Moscow.

Prigozhin, the leader of the controversial Wagner paramilitary group, was on the passenger list of the Embraer aircraft that went down en route from the Russian capital to St. Petersburg, the TASS news agency said Wednesday, citing the Federal Agency for Air Transport.

“An investigation of the Embraer plane crash that happened in the Tver Region this evening was initiated. According to the passenger list, first and last name of Yevgeny Prigozhin was included in this list,” the agency stated.

Ten people — seven passengers and three crew members — were on board when the jet went down, SkyNews said.

Prigozhin had led his military group in a mutiny against Russian President Vladimir Putin on June 24, marching toward Moscow before the effort was called off around 100 miles before he reached the capital and the troops agreed to turn around and head back to the front lines.

The crash comes just two days after Prigozhin, 62, shared his first video address since his aborted Kremlin coup.

The unverified footage of the mercenary in camouflage toting an assault weapon appeared on Telegram channels tied to Wagner on Tuesday.

The video is believed to have been shot somewhere in Africa, as a plane linked to Prigozhin is thought to have landed in Bamako, Mali, on Sunday.

The Wagner Group was hired by a local military junta in Mali in 2021, after UN peacekeepers and French troops were expelled from the country.

Prior to the footage leak, Prigozhin had kept a low profile since the brief June mutiny that threatened to usurp Russia’s military chiefs over their handling of the Ukraine war.

Wagner fighters have suffered heavy losses in the conflict, where they are leading the assault on Bakhmut.

Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko brokered a fragile peace deal between Putin and Prigozhin, who agreed to call off the march on Moscow in exchange for pardons for himself and his troops.