A politician from the party of Russian President Vladimir Putin has been found dead in a courtyard outside his home, local media reported Thursday, adding to the growing list of Russian elites who have died under unclear circumstances in recent months. Vladimir Egorov, a Tobolsk City Duma Deputy from the ruling United Russia party, was reportedly 46 at the time of his death, which was reported by Russian newspaper Kommersant, citing the press service of the Investigative Committee for the Tyumen Region in Russia. There were no "external signs of criminal death" on Egorov's body, investigators told Kommersant. The committee "could not confirm the information about the circumstances of the deputy's death" to Kommersant, it said, as they are "still conducting an autopsy." Russian state media TASS meanwhile reported on Thursday that Egorov "was found dead in Tobolsk," also citing the regional committee. And unofficial Telegram channel Baza – which has links to Russian security services – said Egorov's body "was discovered in the courtyard of his house on Kedrovaya Street" on Wednesday. Kommersant and TASS reported that investigators are still establishing the causes of Egorov's death, while the Tobolsk City Duma published an obituary on its social media page Thursday saying that Egorov died "as a result of an accident." The Duma praised Egorov – its deputy chairman before his death – for providing "comprehensive support to the participants of the Special Military Operation and the families of military personnel" fighting in Ukraine and for taking "an active part in the social and political life of the city." He joins a list of prominent Russians who have died by suicide or in unexplained accidents in recent months and years, including several businessmen with ties to Russia's two largest energy companies. Among that group was Ravil Maganov, the chairman of Lukoil, Russia's second biggest oil and gas company, which had previously taken the unusual public stance of speaking out against Russia's war in Ukraine. Maganov died after falling out of the window of a hospital in Moscow, according to Russian state news agency TASS. Russian sausage magnate-turned-lawmaker Pavel Antov, another member of the United Russia party who topped Forbes ranking of the 100 richest civil servants in Russia in 2018, died in India last December after falling from the third floor of his hotel, according to the Indian police. Months before his death he had reaffirmed his support for Putin after denying he posted an anti-war message on WhatsApp, blaming an "unfortunate misunderstanding and a technical error." In May, Russian Deputy Minister of Science and Higher Education Pyotr Kucherenko died after falling ill on a plane with a Russian delegation returning from a business trip to Cuba. A journalist who said he had spoken with Kucherenko in the months prior to his death said that Kucherenko had felt like a hostage of the Russian government and feared for his own safety. — CNN
