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Powerful Russians are dying one after another in an increasingly bizarre series of deaths following criticism from Russian President Vladimir Putin.
A number of businessmen have died in the past few months as Russians have become increasingly frustrated with their long-running invasion of Ukraine. Ivan Pechorin died on September 12 after reportedly falling from a speedboat off the coast of Vladivostok.
Rabil Maganov, chairman of Russian oil giant Lukoil, has died after reportedly falling from a sixth-floor window of a Moscow hospital on Sept. 1. Lukoil claimed that Maganov “died of a serious illness.”
Former Lukoil top manager Aleksandr Subbotin was found dead in the basement of his Moscow residence in May after visiting a healer for hangover symptoms, instead suffering from heart failure. was
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At least eight Russian oligarchs have died in strange circumstances over the past few months, according to Euro News. International investigators have suggested viewing these deaths as premeditated suicides or assassinations in retaliation for their opposition to the invasion of Ukraine and their links to corruption at the Russian gas company Gazprom.
Leonid Shulman, head of transport services at Gazprom Invest, was found dead in February just before the invasion. He said he found a suicide note next to him.
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The morning after the invasion began, authorities found Alexander Chulyakov, a senior manager of corporate security at Gazprom, hanged in his garage. An unnamed law enforcement source told Russian newspaper Novaya Gazeta that Gazprom security forces arrived ahead of the police.
Rebekah Koffler, a former Defense Intelligence Agency official and author of “Putin’s Playbook: Russia’s Secret Plan to Defeat America,” told Fox News Digital at the time of Pechorin’s death that “the Russian investigation is credible.” Since it cannot be done, it is unlikely that the truth will be discovered.”
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“If this had been a hit, it would have been made to look like a tragic accident,” Koffler explained.
She also said that the Russian media “couldn’t keep the story straight about what happened to Maganov today” when Maganov died, and that the Russian news agencies were mostly killed by the Russian government. It was described as being under control, or at least being affected.
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“The truth is, these tactics were deliberately designed to be stealthy, so investigators were unable to identify any wrongdoing. Normally, these would be considered ‘tragic accidents.’” [which is] It’s also part of the doctrine,” she said.
Fox News’ Paul Best and Jon Brown contributed to this report.