Controversial Statue of Deceased Wagner Boss Unveiled in Bangui

bangui, central african republic - A statue of the late Wagner boss Evgeny Prigozhin was unveiled in Bangui, the capital of the Central African Republic. The statue depicts Prigozhin in a bulletproof vest with a walkie-talkie in hand, accompanied by Wagner founder Dmitry Utkin holding a Kalashnikov.

In Bangui, the capital of the Central African Republic, a statue of the deceased Wagner boss Evgeny Prigozhin was unveiled in the presence of army officers and the Minister of Defense of the African country.

The statue shows Prigozhin in a bulletproof vest with a walkie-talkie in his left hand. Next to him stands Wagner founder Dmitry Utkin, who experts say was even more dangerous and bloodthirsty than Prigozhin, depicted with a Kalashnikov.

Mercenaries from the Wagner group were first spotted in the Central African Republic in 2018, after they were asked by President Faustin-Archange Touadéra to take up arms against rebel groups.

Evgeny Prigozhin, along with Utkin and eight others, perished in the summer of 2023 when their plane crashed near Moscow. Speculation immediately arose internationally that the Kremlin might be behind the crash. Prigozhin and Putin had an unprecedented public conflict a month earlier: the paramilitary Wagner group had rebelled and advanced towards Moscow, but the rebellion stopped short of the capital. Prigozhin hesitated and struck a deal with his 'old friend'.

Later, photos emerged of Prigozhin visiting Bangui. The images showed Prigozhin - accompanied by Dmitry Siti, the former Wagner group representative in the Central African Republic - taking selfies with Bangui residents.