Lt. Col. Roman Malyk, incharge of Russia’s key efforts to mobilise against Ukraine, was found dead under “suspicious" circumstances, a report said on Sunday. Malyk was said to be a close aide of Russian President Vladimir Putin, and was found dead at his residence in Russia’s Primorsky area village.
An investigation has been launched into his death and suicide has not been ruled out as a cause by Russian police, reports said.
This is the latest case in a string of “mysterious" deaths of Putin’s close allies. Last month, Russian oligarch Ivan Pechorin was found dead in a mysterious condition in Vladivostok, a CNN report had stated.
Notably, Roman Malyk’s death comes amid many reported assaults on Ukraine mobilisation offices across Russia as resentment increased over Vladimir Putin’s referendum for a military call-up in September, a Hindustan Times report said.
Teams of armed enlistment officers working with the police have been forcing men to join the army in many Russian cities, The Mirror reported.
Vladimir Putin announced partial mobilisation of Russia’s 2 million-strong military reserves “to defend the motherland, its sovereignty and territorial integrity”.
Reports of such mysterious deaths of Russian executives are not new. Out of all the businessmen who have died in the last 7 months in Russia, six were reportedly close to Vladimir Putin. They were associated with Russia’s two largest energy companies.
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