Russian Deputy Attorney General Saak Albertovich Karapetyan was reportedly flying on an unauthorized helicopter flight on Wednesday when it crashed near the village of Vonyshevo, outside of Moscow.
Karapetyan's work for the Russian government was exposed by a Swiss court this year after it exposed a plot to flip a local official into a double-agent for the Kremlin. Karapetyan, who was 58 when he died, was reportedly familiar with some of the most high-profile clandestine operations carried out under the orders of Vladimir Putin. Not only did he work closely with Veselnitskaya, he was also running some of Moscow’s most high-profile efforts to thwart international investigations into Russia’s alleged crimes.
In one instance, Karapetyan signed a letter from the Russian government telling the US that Moscow wouldn't help with a civil case pursuing more information in the death of Sergei Magnitsky, a Russian lawyer who had reportedly tried to expose a $230 million fraud before being jailed on tax-related charges that political opponents said were political retribution for his targeting of senior Russian officials. Leaked emails reported by the New York Times showed Veselnitskaya helped draft the document sent with that letter.
Karapetyan was also reportedly involved in efforts to foil international investigations for more than a decade. He was reportedly present for a meeting in Moscow where British detectives claim they were poisoned during efforts to track down the killers of Alexander Litvinenko, who died after a dose of radioactive poison in London in 2006. Despite claims that they were trying to help, the general prosecutor’s office did everything it could to block the Scotland Yard investigation.
According to the Daily Beast, the wreckage of a helicopter allegedly carrying Karapetyan was discovered near the village of Vonyshevo. The metal was twisted and mangled beyond repair. Why the experienced pilot crashed isn't known.
- Source, Zero Hedge, read more here