A Russian chemicals executive whose plant supplied materials for military drones has been found dead with a bullet wound and a rifle nearby, becoming the latest in a growing list of mysterious deaths amongst Russia’s business elite since the Ukraine war began.
Alexander Tyunin, 50, who headed Khimprominzhiniring – part of state nuclear giant Rosatom – was discovered lying motionless next to his car by a passing motorist in the Moscow region settlement of Kokoshkino on 19 September.
A hunting rifle and what authorities described as a “suicide note” were found near his body, with Russian state media quickly reporting the death as suicide before any investigation had begun.
Suspicious Timing of ‘Suicide Note’
The handwritten note reportedly stated: “I did it myself — I’ve been tired of fighting depression for five years. It keeps getting worse. I have no strength left.” The message included Tyunin’s wife’s phone number.
However, doubts have emerged after it was discovered that details of the note appeared in Russian media before authorities had officially confirmed the executive’s death.
An unnamed source close to the investigation said there was “an obvious need to get out the version that this was suicide before any investigations had begun.”
Ukrainian journalist Denis Kazansky posted a sarcastic response: “Top managers of YUKOS and Lukoil have already fallen out of windows before. What are you laughing at? They just fall out of windows themselves. Russian oil workers have this professional deformity. As soon as they approach the windows, their legs immediately give way.”
Strategic Importance
Tyunin had headed Khimprominzhiniring since April 2016, overseeing production of carbon composites for aviation, energy, and military equipment. The company, operating under the Umatex brand within Rosatom, is Russia’s only producer of carbon fibre – a crucial material for military drones including the Shahed/Geran attack drones used against Ukraine.
According to military sources, Umatex Group companies account for approximately 95% of carbon fibre production in Russia, making Tyunin’s role strategically significant for the country’s military capabilities. The company was placed under US sanctions in February 2023.
Pattern of Mysterious Deaths
Tyunin becomes at least the 20th high-profile Russian manager to die under mysterious circumstances since the full-scale invasion of Ukraine began in February 2022, according to multiple investigations by international media.
The deaths have followed a disturbing pattern, with many executives allegedly falling from windows, shooting themselves multiple times, or dying in unexplained accidents.
Just two months before Tyunin’s death, Transport Minister Roman Starovoit was found dead from a gunshot wound on 7 July, hours after being dismissed by President Vladimir Putin. Sources said he had left ministry meetings that morning appearing completely normal, before being found dead in a Moscow park.
Days earlier, on 4 July, Transneft vice-president Andrey Badalov, 62, fell to his death from his elite tower block apartment on Moscow’s Rublyovskoye Highway.
In March, former MP Buvaysar Saitiev, 49, was found in a “serious condition” after plunging from a Moscow window and later died.
The ‘Window Falls’ Phenomenon
The phenomenon of prominent Russians falling from windows has become so common it has spawned dark humour amongst observers. Since 2022, the list includes:
Marina Yankina, 58, a finance official at Russia’s Ministry of Defence, found dead in February 2023 after apparently falling 160ft from a 16th-floor window in St Petersburg.
Ravil Maganov, 67, chairman of Lukoil, Russia’s second-largest oil company, died when he plunged from a sixth-floor window at Moscow’s elite Central Clinical Hospital in September 2022. Remarkably, Putin had visited the same hospital that morning to pay respects to Mikhail Gorbachev.
Mikhail Rogachev, 64, former oil company vice president at Yukos, died in October 2024 after falling from his tenth-floor Moscow apartment. Yukos had been dismembered by Putin after turning against him.
Pavel Antov, 65, a Russian politician and sausage tycoon, found dead after falling from a hotel window in India on Christmas Day 2022.
Beyond Windows
Not all mysterious deaths involve falls. The methods have varied dramatically:
- Colonel Vadim Boyko, deputy head of a naval school, allegedly shot himself in the chest five times in November 2022
- Alexander Subbotin, 44, a former Lukoil manager, died in May 2022 from consuming “toad poison” during what Russian media called “Jamaican voodoo rituals” at a shaman’s house
- Multiple executives found with their families dead in alleged murder-suicides
- Several burning alive after “falling asleep with lit cigarettes”
- Others hacked to death with axes
‘Sudden Russian Death Syndrome’
The phenomenon has been dubbed “sudden Russian death syndrome” or “sudden oligarch death syndrome” by international observers. According to a USA Today investigation, 38 Russian businessmen and oligarchs close to the Kremlin died in mysterious circumstances between 2014 and 2017 alone.
Businessman Bill Browder, a prominent Putin critic, has suggested the Russian president personally orders executions of business leaders he feels won’t be “yes-men,” intimidating successors with threats of violence.
In Russian intelligence circles, “mokroye delo” or “wet work” is the term for assassination, with targets sometimes told to commit suicide or face consequences for their families.
Investigation Links
According to investigative reporting by Novaya Gazeta, some deaths may be connected to large-scale accounting fraud at Gazprom, with executives potentially funnelling money to businesses owned by friends and family members with FSB and military ties.
Igor Volobuyev, former vice-chairman of Gazprombank who fled Russia, told The Insider he believed colleague Vladislav Avayev’s alleged murder-suicide was staged: “Perhaps he knew something and posed some kind of danger.
Families of several deceased executives have rejected official suicide verdicts, demanding independent investigations.
Economic Context
The deaths come as Russia’s economy faces mounting pressure from sanctions and war costs. Sberbank CEO Herman Gref recently warned of “technical stagnation” with GDP growth approaching zero, signalling increasing pressure on industry leaders.
Since February 2022, the death toll includes executives from Gazprom, Lukoil, Transneft, and numerous other strategic companies. At least 50 deaths have been classified as suspicious by The Times, with victims including judges, journalists, military officials, and defence industry executives.
The latest death adds to what Dutch broadcaster NOS called “a grim series of Russian billionaires, many from the oil and gas industries, who have been found dead under unusual circumstances.”
As one Ukrainian military analyst noted: “This could be a warning to others, showing what happens if you don’t pay your debts, refuse to hand over business shares, or go against Putin.”
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