Yevgeny Prigozhin, head of the Wagner Group, has been reported to be aboard a plane which crashed and killed its passengers on Wednesday.

There were seven regular passengers and three crew members. Prigozhin was on the passenger list of the plane, Russia’s civil aviation authority said on Wednesday.

Prigozhin was the leader of the Wagner Private Military Company, a Russian state-funded private military company. He was a major ally and military supporter of Vladmir Putin, Russia’s president.

The aircraft is said to have crashed in the Tver region, north of Moscow, Russia. A few videos have appeared on social media showing the jet as it crashed.

The BBC has reported a Wagner-linked Telegram channel Grey Zone claimed that the jet was shot down by air defences north of Moscow.

Michael Horowitz, head of intelligence at leading intercontinental security specialist Le Beck, tweeted to support claims that Prigozhin was aboard the plane.

Prigozhin led and halted a mutiny against the Russian armed forces in June 2023. He retreated after claiming he did not wish to shed Russia blood. Prigozhin then relocated to Belarus, with the strength of his relationship with Putin uncertain.