Wagner mercenary chief Yevgeny Prigozhin, who led a revolt against Russia President Vladimir Putin, was killed in a plane crash on Wednesday, Russian authorities said.
No cause for the crash was announced but the announcement raised suspicions that Prigozhin had been killed. Putin had denounced the June rebellion as "treason," but the mercenary leader had appeared to escape immediate retaliation after striking a deal with Kremlin to leave the country and move to Belarus.
Reacting to Prigozhin's death, Tesla CEO and X owner Elon Musk said that it took "longer" than he expected. "Slight chance this is a psy op," he added.
Musk's response came after a X user posted, "That didn't take too long."
The Wagner chief had crossed into Russia with his forces to topple Moscow's military leadership in June.
The 62-year-old was on board a private plane that crashed while traveling between Moscow and Saint Petersburg.
According to preliminary information, all 10 people on board died, including three crew members, the ministry said.
Russia's aviation agency, Rosaviatsia said it set up a special commission to investigate the crash of the aircraft belonging to MNT-Aero.
Russia's Investigative Committee, which probes serious crimes, said it opened an investigation into the crash.
The bodies of eight people have been found so far at the site of the crash, RIA Novosti said citing the emergency services.
