Vladimir Putin ally dies and critic barely alive in latest mysterious incidents

On New Year's Eve, another mysterious death took place in Russia, while in the US, an exiled Vladimir Putin critic and his wife barely survived an apparent home accident.

Putin’s ‘rocket man’

Vladimir Nesterov passed away on December 30 and becomes the fourth senior Russian official to perish in a matter of a few days.

Vladimir Nesterov, 74, is said to have made Putin’s dreams of space exploration a reality. For this reason, Nesterov was regarded as ‘Putin’s rocket man’, Daily Mail reports.

Nesterov was the former general director of the Khrunichev Centre, which was thought to become a launching ground for Russia’s first manned mission to the moon.

He was also instrumental in introducing the latest Russian rocket technology known as the Angara rocket.

According to reports, Nesterov has been under investigation since 2014 on embezzlement charges. Most recently, he was suspected of illegally pocketing upwards of £57 million and was placed under house arrest.

Nesterov’s cause of death is currently unclear.

Read more:

⋙ Former Russian army chief dies mysteriously after Vladimir Putin allegedly cancels meeting

⋙ Vladimir Putin ally mysteriously dies in suspiciously similar circumstances to another

Exiled theatre director barely escapes death

Meanwhile, many reports have picked up on the home accident of Russian actor and theatre director Dmitry Krymov who together with his spouse barely escaped death, Daily Star reports.

Krymov lives in exile in New York and reportedly fled Russia at the outset of the Ukraine war. He is known as a Putin critic and was against the invasion of Ukraine.

On New Year's Eve, Krymov’s apartment was set on fire by what was described as a mysterious spark. At the time both Krymov and his wife were at home and suffered serious burns.

Krymov is reported to be 50% burnt and remains in the hospital also due to carbon monoxide poisoning, while his wife is better and was released earlier.

The couple had been living in New York for most of 2022.

Ever since the war in Ukraine started many Vladimir Putin critics have been found dead in mysterious circumstances, ranging from falling off tall buildings, jumping from windows, falling down stairs, and alleged suicides without leaving any note behind.

Read more:

⋙ Vladimir Putin critic dies mysteriously in another suspicious fall, days after death of friend

Sources used:

-DailyMail: ‘Putin's 'rocket man' becomes latest senior Russian official to mysteriously die - days after top former Kremlin general was found dead on Christmas Day’

-DailyStar: ‘Putin critic '50% burnt' and almost dead after mysterious fire on New Year's Eve’