Russian authorities confirmed on Sunday that the 10 people who died in a private plane crash north of Moscow on August 23 were those who were on the plane’s manifest.
The most prominent among them was Yevgeny Prigozhin, 62, a businessman and leader of the Russian Wagner mercenary group, who two months ago led a brief rebellion against the Russian military leadership. He was buried in St. Petersburg, Russia, on Tuesday.
Another was Dmitry Utkin, 53, a longtime lieutenant of Prigozhin. Wagner’s mercenary group took its name from his call sign, which he chose to honor composer Richard Wagner, a favorite of Adolf Hitler. It was Mr. Oetken He was buried outside Moscow on ThursdayAccording to Russian media reports.
The others on board were Wagner’s associates, and three were flight crew members: two pilots and a flight attendant. Here’s what The Times learned about them.
Valerie Chekalov
Wagner’s logistics chief, Mr. Chekalov, 47, oversaw several of Mr. Prigozhin’s projects abroad, including in Syria and Africa, according to the Dossier Center, a Russian opposition news outlet based in London.
Last month the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Penalties imposed against Mr. Chekalov for acting on behalf of Mr. Prigozhin and facilitating munitions shipments to Russia.
He was buried on Tuesday at the Northern Cemetery in St. Petersburg, Russia.
Yevgeny Makaryan
Mr. Makarian joined Wagner in March 2016 and fought with Wagner offensive forces in Syria in 2018, according to the Dossier Center.
He was injured that year, according to the center, when American aircraft responded to an attack. The New York Times reported in its retelling of the battle that pro-Syrian fighters, including Wagner mercenaries, attacked American, Kurdish and Arab forces in western Syria in one of the bloodiest battles involving American forces fighting ISIS.
Sergey Propostin
Mr. Probostin, 44, was one of Mr. Prigozhin’s bodyguards.
Local media reported that he was from Novocherkassk in the Rostov region of Russia.
He had participated in the Second Chechen War, which ended in 2009, according to the Dosier Center. Russian media reported that he was injured.
Media reports said he joined Wagner in March 2015, and moved to St. Petersburg shortly after meeting Prigozhin, although it was not clear when this happened.
Nikolai Matyusyev
The Dossier Center said that it was unable to find a person with that name on Wagner’s employee lists, but it found Nikolai Matusevich, who had served with Wagner since January 2017 and fought in Syria.
Alexander Totmin
According to his social media accounts, Mr. Totmin, 28, was also one of Mr. Prigozhin’s bodyguards. Biographical information and publications in the accounts indicate that he was a native of the Altai Territory in Western Siberia.
Alexei Levshin
Mr. Levchin was the pilot of the plane. He was from Russia’s Tambov region, located south of Moscow and a few hundred miles east of the Ukrainian border, and had always wanted to be a pilot, according to Russian media interviews with family members.
He reportedly attended the Sasovsky Civil Aviation School in the Ryazan region, which lies between Tambov and Moscow, as well as the St. Petersburg Civil Aviation Academy.
His wife, Svetlana, told Russian media that he had worked in the aviation industry for seven years and was at home briefly before leaving for the plane that crashed.
His daughter, Anastasia, told a Russian television station, RBK, that he had worked with Mr. Prigozhin for several years. “My father was a very good person,” she said. “He was outgoing, kind-hearted, helped everyone, loved life, and was a wonderful hard-working father and husband. He loved us dearly, always felt that way, caring, generous and a true family man.”
Rustam Karimov
Karimov, 29 years old, was the plane’s co-pilot. According to Russian media, he was born in the city of Perm, an industrial center near the Ural Mountains, and lived in St. Petersburg.
His father, Shukur Karimov, told Russian media that Karimov served in the army before working for S7 Airlines, one of Russia’s largest passenger carriers. He moved to St. Petersburg for a new job two months ago.
Before his final trip, Mr. Karimov called his mother to inform her that he would be traveling by plane.
It is unclear whether Mr. Karimov is known to have worked with Mr. Prigozhin in the past. His father said his son did not know Mr Prigozhin would be on the plane, adding that he was “just a pilot”.
Kristina Raspopova
Ms. Raspopova, 39, was the flight attendant and the only woman on board.
She was born in Kazakhstan, studied at the Moscow University of Law and Finance, and was divorced, according to her Facebook page. According to her social media profiles, Ms Raspopova was a “VIP hostess” living in Moscow, her hometown.
Her last Facebook post, a photo of her suitcase and a meal, came a day before the plane crash.
“Infuriatingly humble alcohol fanatic. Unapologetic beer practitioner. Analyst.”
