The fatal plane crash that killed Yevgeny Prigozhin this week also eliminated Wagner’s military mastermind and founder, who was credited with some of the group’s most notable — and gruesome — military successes.

Dmitry Utkin, a grim man with a gaunt face, smooth-shaven head and Nazi SS tattoos decorating his collarbone, founded Wagner in the wake of a two-and-a-half decade career with Russian military intelligence.

Alongside Prigozhin — the public face and financier of the group — 53-year-old Utkin was an equally powerful force within the organisation, according to former and current Wagner fighters. Utkin was one of the few Wagner leaders with the extensive experience in the Russian armed forces necessary to run a paramilitary group with operations stretching from Ukraine to Africa.