After death in jet crash
Prigozhin representative Utkin buried in Moscow
8/31/2023 3:23 p.m
Little is known about him, but Dmitri Utkin is one of Prigozhin’s most important loyalists. He was responsible for directing Wagner’s operations until his death. Now Prigozhin’s right hand is buried in a military cemetery in northern Moscow.
Two days after the funeral of Wagner boss Yevgeny Prigozhin, his deputy Dmitri Utkin, who died in the same plane crash, was also buried. Guarded by a large police presence, around 20 relatives said goodbye to the extensive military cemetery in Mytishchi in northern Moscow on Thursday morning.
The ceremony initially took place in a small circle in the Church of St. Sergius. The coffin was then driven to the cemetery in a motorcade under police protection. Not all people on site were allowed to enter the cemetery, entry was only possible by invitation from the family. Some mourners wore clothing with the Wagner Group logo. The tomb is surrounded by flowers, a small portrait of a man with a shaved head leaning on a wooden cross.
Involved in June uprising
Little is known about 53-year-old Utkin. The veteran of the Russian military intelligence service GRU was considered Prigozhin’s right-hand man and was responsible for directing the operations of the mercenary group until his death. Utkin is also said to have been involved in the June uprising in which Wagner troops briefly marched towards Moscow to overthrow the Russian military leadership.
The plane carrying Prigozhin and Utkin crashed on August 23 while flying from Moscow to St. Petersburg. In addition to the Wagner boss and his deputy, other fighters from the mercenary group died. A total of ten people died. According to his company, Prigozhin was buried last Tuesday in the Porokhovskoye cemetery in the north-east of his hometown of St. Petersburg. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov previously said that President Vladimir Putin would not attend the funeral. On Sunday, the Russian investigative committee responsible for serious crimes confirmed Prigozhin’s death on the basis of “molecular genetic tests”.
Western countries and Ukraine consider Russia’s involvement in the plane crash to be possible, which the Kremlin dismissed as an “absolute lie”. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said on Wednesday that investigations were being carried out in all directions, including that of a “premeditated crime”.