Crime Branch arrives in Rayagada to investigate death of two Russian nationals

A team of officials from the Odisha Police crime branch reached Raygada to investigate the death of two Russian nationals that occurred there a few days back.

Rayagada(Odisha):Odisha Police Crime Branch on Friday arrived at the Sai International hotel in Rayagada to investigate the death of two Russian nationals. The team consisting of four officers is led by DSP Saroj Kant Mahanto that and two forensic experts and photographers to assist the CID-Crime Branch probe.

Russian national Pavel Antov, who was also a Putin critic, died after allegedly falling from a hotel's third floor on December 24. Vladimir Bidenov had earlier died of a heart attack, the Odisha Police said citing the post-mortem report. The police said CID-Crime Branch are cross-checking the information collected from their co-travelers Pansasenko Natalia and Turov Mikhail. Both the Russian tourists are fully cooperating with the inquiry, the Crime Branch said in a statement.

Earlier on Thursday, Odisha Police said the new team is entrusted with the responsibility of visiting the spot, examining the witnesses and identifying and collecting evidence from the spot and local police, and taking follow-up action.

The team has further examined their interpreter Jitendra Singh and tried to ascertain the veracity of the chain of events. The CID-CB team has also collected copies of documents regarding their travel to India. The travel itinerary of the Russian tourists and their booking at different hotels, airlines, and travel companies are being verified, the statement read. Efforts are being made to collect the medical health records of the deceased.

The crime branch team will visit the cremation spot and examine and then could talk to doctors who have done the post-mortem of both Russian tourists. According to the CID-Crime Branch, a preliminary investigation has revealed that the Russian nationals were on a trip to the tribal region of Odisha.