Ex-Russian Minister Dies by Suicide After Putin Sacking Amid Graft Probe

Former Russian Transport Minister Roman Starovoit was found dead by suicide on Monday, mere hours after President Vladimir Putin dismissed him from his post. Officials confirmed Starovoit’s body was discovered inside a car in Odintsovo, a Moscow suburb, with a gunshot wound. The Investigative Committee of Russia is probing the circumstances of his death, with suicide identified as the main theory.

Starovoit’s abrupt dismissal, announced via an official Kremlin decree, came amidst a multi-day disruption to air travel across Russia, which authorities attributed to “external interference.” Concurrently, Russian media outlets reported that Starovoit was under investigation for alleged embezzlement of state funds allocated for building fortifications in the southern Kursk region, where he previously served as governor. His predecessor in the Kursk governor role, Alexei Smirnov, was reportedly arrested in April in connection with the same case.

In a separate development on Monday, another Transport Ministry official, 42-year-old Andrey Korneichuk, also died, reportedly from acute heart failure. Authorities have stated there is no indication linking the two deaths. These internal events unfold against a backdrop of intensified conflict, including recent Ukrainian long-range strikes on Russian targets and continued heavy fighting resulting in civilian and military casualties across Ukraine.

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