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No hard evidence of Prigozhin's death yet — Kremlin

Answering a question about whether Russian President Vladimir Putin would be able to attend the funeral of PMC Wagner's founder if his death in the plane crash is confirmed, Dmitry Peskov said it was premature to talk about this

MOSCOW, August 25. /TASS/. Confirming the death of Yevgeny Prigozhin, the founder of the Wagner Private Military Company (PMC), can only be done via DNA tests, which are not yet available, Kremlin Spokesman Dmitry Peskov said.

"If you listened carefully to the Russian president's statement yesterday, he said that all the necessary tests, including DNA tests, are now being carried out. There are no official results of any kind [yet]. As soon as they are ready to be published, they will be published," Peskov told reporters when asked whether the Kremlin had official confirmation of Prigozhin's death.

The same, according to the spokesman, applies to the causes of the crash of Prigozhin's plane.

Answering a question about whether Russian President Vladimir Putin would be able to attend the funeral of PMC Wagner's founder if his death in the plane crash is confirmed, Peskov said it was premature to talk about this.

"It is not yet known. The fact is none of us knows how long the necessary tests and actions related to the investigation will take. Therefore, now, when there are no dates for the funeral and so on, it is impossible to talk about it at all," the Kremlin spokesman said. Peskov pointed out that "the president's work schedule is quite busy at the moment."

An Embraer business jet flying from Moscow to St. Petersburg crashed on Wednesday night in Russia’s Tver Region. According to preliminary data, there were ten people on board, all of whom died. Russia’s Federal Air Transport Agency said that businessman Yevgeny Prigozhin was listed as one of the passengers. A criminal case has been opened over the crash on the grounds of violation of safety regulations for the movement and operation of air transport.

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