FORMER RUSSIAN MINISTER ROMAN STAROVOYT COMMITS SUICIDE HOURS AFTER DISMISSAL BY PUTIN
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By Aishat Momoh. O.
Russia’s former Minister of Transport, Roman Starovoyt, was found dead by suicide on Monday, just hours after President Vladimir Putin relieved him of his ministerial duties, according to official reports.
The 53-year-old was discovered in his private vehicle with a gunshot wound in the Odintsovo district, a suburb of Moscow, the Investigative Committee confirmed. Authorities said the main line of investigation is suicide. Russian state media reported that he shot himself near his car in a public area close to apartment blocks.
“Today, the body of former Transport Minister Roman Starovoyt was found in his private car with a gunshot wound in the Odintsovo district,” the Investigative Committee announced in a statement. “The main version \[considered] is suicide.”
The tragic development came shortly after the Kremlin published a decree announcing Starovoyt’s dismissal. The official statement offered no explanation, stating simply: “Roman Starovoyt was relieved of the post of Minister of Transport.”
Starovoyt, who served as Russia’s transport minister for a year, had previously been the governor of the Kursk region a strategic border area frequently targeted in cross-border attacks during Russia’s ongoing war in Ukraine. He was widely known for his public appearances with President Putin during the conflict.
His dismissal followed a chaotic weekend of travel disruptions at Russian airports, reportedly caused by Ukrainian drone attacks. While the Kremlin has yet to comment on Starovoyt’s death, speculation has mounted in Russian media linking his firing to a growing corruption scandal in the Kursk region.
In April, Alexei Smirnov, who succeeded Starovoyt as Kursk governor, was arrested for allegedly embezzling over \$12 million earmarked for border fortifications. Several outlets reported that Smirnov may have testified against Starovoyt in the course of the ongoing investigation into the misuse of defense funds.
Despite these reports, Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov earlier on Monday denied that Starovoyt’s dismissal was due to a “loss of trust.”
Shortly after announcing the dismissal, President Putin appointed Andrei Nikitin, one of Starovoyt’s deputies, as acting transport minister. The Russian Duma is expected to vote on the appointment on Tuesday.
Starovoyt’s death adds to a string of high-profile investigations and arrests of military and civilian officials in Russia, as the Kremlin intensifies its crackdown on corruption amid its prolonged war with Ukraine.
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