OAN Shannon Kelland
UPDATED 4:19 PM PT – Tuesday, December 27, 2022
Multiple businessmen have been found dead over the past few months as citizens of Russia have grown increasingly dissatisfied with the invasion in Ukraine.
The latest found dead, Pavel Antov was a local politician in Russia.
Antov was the founder of a meat processing plant, Vladimir Standard, that brought him immense wealth giving him the title “Sausage King.” In 2019, Forbes estimated the tycoon’s fortune at approximately $140m (£118m). He was amongst the top of Russia’s rich list of lawmakers and civil servants.
The 65-year-old was found dead on Sunday after celebrating his birthday at the Hotel Sai International in Rayagada, India. He had reportedly fell from a third story window from the room in which he was staying in.
Vladimir Budanov, one of his traveling companions, was also found dead at the hotel on Friday due to a stroke.
Antov was accused of criticizing Russian President Vladimir Putin’s ongoing invasion of Ukraine in June after a Russian missile assault hit Kyiv, which resulted in civilian casualties.
The Sausage King was a member of the United Russia Party. This party of parliament used to be headed by Russian President Vladimir Putin and is still supportive of the leader. Antov pledged his support for Putin last June when he was allegedly being forced to deny posting an anti-war message on WhatsApp.
“Unfortunate misunderstanding and a technical error” he said after deleting the post.
Vivekanand Sharma, a police official in the Indian State of Odisha said that the police believed Antov died by suicide previous to be release of the autopsy. Sharma later added that the prominent millionaire’s death had been ruled an “unnatural death,” which includes deaths resulting from accidents and suicides.
The Sausage King is one of many Russian oligarchs who have died recently and also had an association with comments against Putin’s Ukraine actions.
Ravil Maganov, Chairman of Russian oil company Lukoil, was found dead back in September. His death was reportedly due to a fall from the sixth-floor window of a Moscow hospital. The chairman and his company had shared their lack of support of the Ukraine invasion. Maganov specifically urged Putin to end the invasion, and calling it a “tragedy”.
Ivan Pechorin, Managing Director for the aviation industry at the Corporation for the Development of the Far East and Arctic found dead on September 12. His death was reportedly due to a fall from a speeding boat off the coast of Vladivostok, which led to him drowning.
Social media’s reaction to this news came with jokes. The main character in “Ferris Bueller’s Day Off” Abe Foreman is joked as being the Sausage King or having an association to Russia’s Sausage King.
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