Analysts in Russia and elsewhere have been speculating about the fate of Yevgeny Prigozhin, the founder of the Wagner mercenary group. They are debating what happened when the plane believed to have been carrying him crashed northwest of Moscow. Some have come to the conclusion he was assassinated.

The crash occurred on Wednesday in the Tver region. Prigozhin was believed to be traveling to Saint Petersburg along with other Wagner members.

His fighters played a leading role in the war in Ukraine. However, in June he led them in a mutiny against Russian military leaders.

President Vladimir Putin broke his silence about the crash on Thursday.

Putin said, "He was a man with a complicated fate, and he made serious mistakes in life. But he also achieved the results he needed, both for himself and, when I asked him, for the common cause."

Putin added that investigators are looking into the crash but will need time to determine the cause.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has his own theory about who is to blame.

Zelenskyy said, "First of all, we had nothing to do with it. I think everyone understands who has something to do with it."

Some believe a missile brought down the plane. However, analysts at the Pentagon have dismissed that suggestion.

Analysts at the Washington-based Institute for the Study of War say leaders in the Kremlin had been weakening Prigozhin's authority since the mutiny. They call his death an "assassination" and say it was the "final step to eliminate" the Wagner group.