THE first pictures have emerged of the lavishly-adorned grave of Wagner chief Yevgeny Prigozhin.
Putin's henchmen flanked the gates of a St. Petersburg cemetery today as the rebel warlord was laid to rest in a mysteriously "private ceremony".
The flower-bedecked tomb has finally been pictured at Porokhovskoye cemetery after a day of false trails so that Wagner supporters could not gather for the farewell.
He was buried right next to his biological father Viktor in his hometown after a small funeral that a paranoid Putin refused to attend.
Reports said only Prigozhin’s close family and friends were allowed to be present, amounting to only around 30 people gathering to say goodbye to the failed coup leader.
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The Kremlin was seemingly desperate to avoid a mass gathering over fears that Wagner's mercenaries and their legion of fans might seize an opportunity to make trouble.
In the first post on his official Telegram channel in more than two months, the Wagner Group confirmed that its leader - who died in a plane crash last week - had his final farewell.
They had urged supporters to attend the grave site.
Meanwhile, Prigozhin's top lieutenants, who also perished in the mangled plane wreckage, were also believed to have been buried today at Severnoye cemetery, the same graveyard as the Putin's parents Vladimir and Maria.
Both cemeteries were under heavy guard during today's funerals as Putin's armed goons circled the grounds, while police cordons were also spotted at other burial sites.
Prigozhin was killed last Wednesday when his private jet was blown out of the sky and exploded in a fiery crash that killed all ten onboard.
He became the latest to join a staggering body count of at least 40 high-profile deaths linked to Putin since he launched his bloody war in Ukraine.
Moscow's mouthpiece Dmitry Peskov did not disclose the details of Prigozhin's funeral.
He alleged that his family organised the affair and added that the "presence of the President is not envisaged."
Tearful mourners have also swarmed the Serafimovskoye cemetery and flowers have been mounted on the gates.
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People were being permitted entry to the graveyard, although reports claim they are being quizzed about who they are visiting and have to pass through a metal detector.
Rows of red roses, candles and Wagner flags were left by Russians.
One woman visiting the grave of her relative told local media outlet MKRU: "They never close the gates, this is the first time I've seen this."
An employee at the cemetery also suggested the beefed-up security measures may in fact just be a red herring.
They said: "It seems that they want to confuse you, they specially organized a movement here, but in fact the funeral will take place in another place."
Groups of mourners were also seen taking flowers to the at the Severnoye cemetery.
It is believed that Wagner logistics chief Valery Chekalov, who was also killed in the crash, was buried there this afternoon.
A Russian Orthodox priest led the service, according to Reuters, while grief-stricken attendees kissed his coffin as they said goodbye.
The country's Investigative Committee officially confirmed Prigozhin's death on Sunday, but has not yet put forward possible causes of the crash.
The jet was filmed spiralling towards the ground from 28,000ft, with smoke pouring from the fuselage shortly before it exploded.
Rumours are running rife around the fiery crash due to Prigozhin's strained relationship with Putin after he tried to overthrow him.
But the Kremlin has denied any involvement in his death, despite speculation from Western officials that he may have been purged.
A preliminary U.S. intelligence assessment concluded that an intentional explosion caused the plane to go down.
One of the officials, who could not be named, said the explosion was in line with Putin's "long history of trying to silence his critics".
Sources on Telegram said a consignment of "expensive wine" was loaded onboard the aircraft minutes before takeoff.
Another claim on social media was that explosives were concealed in the booze packaging.
Haunting video resurfaced in the wake of Prigozhin's grisly end showing him chillingly predicting his own dramatic death.
The Wagner chief likened Russia under Vladimir Putin to an aircraft "on the brink of catastrophe" which could "fall apart in the sky".
Prigozhin's private jet went up in flames just 31 miles from Putin's lavish palace at Valdai, northern Russia.
The warlord sent his condolences to Prigozhin's family, but pointed out he had made "serious mistakes" and had a " difficult fate".
Prigozhin had been thought to be living on borrowed time for weeks and was reported to have stayed in a hotel with no windows in neighbouring Belarus.
Among the other nine victims of the plane crash was Dmitry Utkin, a shadowy figure with Nazi tattoos seen as Prigozhin's deputy.
He managed Wagner's operations and allegedly had previously served in Russian military intelligence.
Also onboard was Prigozhin's flight attendant Kristina Raspopova, 39, who had revealed hours earlier to her relatives both a mysterious delay to the flight and unexplained repairs being made to the jet.
The incident came exactly two months after Prigozhin staged his rebellion, which spectacularly backfired and saw him exiled.
