Russia: He Knew Too Much? Putin’s Ex-Minister Found Dead After Sudden Dismissal | World News

New Delhi: Monday (July 7) morning started like any other in Moscow. But by the end of the day, Roman Starovoit – a man once trusted with guarding Russia’s borders – was found lifeless near a bush, only a few steps from his parked car in Odintsovo, a suburb just outside the capital. Hours earlier, Vladimir Putin had removed him from office without explanation. He was Russia’s transport minister.

The news of his mysterious death came in layers. First, Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov stood before the press. A question came up – had Putin lost trust in Starovoit over his handling of events in Kursk? Peskov said no. “If there had been a loss of trust,” he replied, “the decree would have said so”.

Then came silence.

By evening, Russia’s Investigative Committee released a statement. They confirmed Starovoit was no more. They said an inquiry had begun. No cause of death. No mention of suspects. Only the usual phrase – we are looking into it.

According to Forbes Russia, Starovoit may have died late Saturday (July 5) or early Sunday (July 6). His body was discovered only on Monday.

State Duma’s Defence Committee head Andrei Kartapolov told RTVI (a global Russian-speaking multi-platform media) that Starovoit had likely been dead for some time before the public even knew.

Cameras soon captured investigators combing through the Odintsovo parking lot. Images showed men in gloves and masks. Video footage from the scene began circulating on Telegram.

Roman Starovoit had become the transport minister just over a year ago, in May 2024. Before that, he was the governor of Kursk – a region that borders Ukraine – for nearly five years. He had replaced Alexey Smirnov, who previously held the top administrative post in the region. But now, it seems, the two men had been linked in a different way through a corruption case.

According to RBC TV and Kommersant daily, Smirnov may have testified against Starovoit. The investigation reportedly revolved around irregularities in the construction of defensive structures near the Ukraine border. Large sums of federal money had been allocated. Some of it may have vanished.

In Russian political circles, this pattern feels familiar. Arrest one man. Use him to build a case against the next. Smirnov was reportedly detained earlier. After that, whispers began. People close to the case hinted that Starovoit had been under stress for months.

His past was tied tightly to the Russian state. Born in Kursk in 1972, he later moved to St. Petersburg with his family. That is where he began climbing the political ladder. During Valentina Matvienko’s tenure as city governor, he became a trusted member of her team.

He worked on automobile plant projects, then infrastructure and later joined the federal government’s Industry and Infrastructure department – at the time, led by Putin himself. He was involved in preparations for the Sochi Olympics. In 2012, he became head of Rosavtodor, Russia’s federal highway agency. In 2018, he was appointed as the deputy transport minister.

By October that same year, Starovoit had stepped into the role of acting governor of Kursk. His rise had been steady, calculated and always within Putin’s orbit.

Now, his fall is raising old Soviet ghosts.

Veteran Russian journalist Sergey Goryashko drew a chilling parallel. He recalled the fate of Nikolai Shchelokov, Soviet interior minister during the Brezhnev era. After his dismissal, Shchelokov was warned of criminal charges. On the same day he was stripped of all rank, he took his own life.

In Starovoit’s case, investigators had been circling the Kursk government’s budget for 2022 and 2023. Large funds had been approved, but irregularities were reported. He had signed many of those documents.

His last three months, sources say, were filled with dread – anxiety and fear of arrest and betrayal. That fear may have grown stronger after Smirnov’s detention.

In today’s Russia, it is common for arrested officials to implicate their former bosses. Those without strong protection try to flee before the knock comes. Some succeed. Mikhail Yurevich and Boris Dubrovsky, two ex-governors from Chelyabinsk, had both left the country before charges could touch them.

Starovoit stayed. He did not run. He did not speak. And then he disappeared.

His death has no official cause. No autopsy report has been made public. But one thing is certain. Another loyalist has vanished. And this time, even the Kremlin’s silence is speaking volumes.