A senior Russian commander has been killed in a suspicious road accident, that left three others dead as well. His death comes just over a week after a Kremlin general suddenly dropped dead on Christmas Day in mysterious circumstances.
The incident happened on Sunday near Alchevsk in Ukraine‘s occupied region of Luhansk. Colonel Erik Selimov was travelling with his bodyguards, when his vehicle reportedly collided with a truck transporting soldiers from the 88th Separate Motorised Rifle Brigade. The Colonel and three soldiers died at the scene of the crash, according to local media reports.
Two soldiers from the 88th Separate Motorised Rifle Brigade are in serious condition, with doctors fighting to save their lives.
Selimov was the commander of the 136th Separate Guards Motorised Rifle Brigade, that has been deployed to Ukraine.
His death was confirmed in a statement by the Dagestan governor Sergey Melikov.
Melikov said: “Erik Selimov was known as a far-sighted strategist, a fair and principled officer with high moral character. Colleagues noted his professionalism and attentive attitude toward his subordinates.”
He began his career as a platoon commander and later rose to battalion commander. Selimov was also awarded various awards for his courage and heroism in the line of duty.
His demise is just the latest in a series of mysterious and sudden deaths among Russia‘s elite officers’ corps.
Colonel-General Yuri Sadovenko, 56, died suddenly on Christmas Day from a heart attack, although he had been in good health previously.
The former deputy defence minister was a close ally of Sergey Shoigu, who had been the boss of Russia’s Ministry of Defence before his sacking in May 2024.
His death followed that of Lt-Col Stanislav Orlov, 44. Nicknamed the “Spaniard”, he commanded Putin’s notorious football hooligan battalion that fought in Ukraine, including in hotspots such as Bakhmut.
Rumours are swirling in Moscow that the Colonel was killed by Russian special services while he was in his house in occupied Crimea.
The independent Russian media channel Astra showed CCTV footage taken near the officer’s house that apparently showed vans with secret service agents arriving at his home. Shortly afterwards, flashes of light can be seen illuminating the darkness – presumably from gunshots.
