Former Inter TV Channel Head Found Dead in Ex-Minister’s House

23 February 2020 10:52

The Kyiv region police have reported the death of a man who visited the house of the former foreign minister in Mykola Azarov’s government just outside Kyiv.

The Kyiv region police have reported the death of a man who was visiting the house of the former foreign minister in Mykola Azarov’s government just outside Kyiv.

Police, who were summoned to the scene by a resident of the village Chaiky, found the body of a man with gunshot wounds to the head, according to the police press service.

“The 56-year-old resident of Kyiv has been killed. Jericho 941 PSL pistol, ammunition and cartridge case have been seized at the scene as evidence,” police informed.

According to ZN.UA, with reference to a source in the police, it was businessman Serhiy Starytskyi who died of a gunshot wound in the Kyiv region. His body was found in the home of the former foreign minister of Ukraine Leonid Kozhara.

Media Detector reports that Starytskyi was the former head of Inter TV channel, CEO of Tonis TV Company and one of the owners of Atlantic Group Advertising Holding.

Kozhara held the post of Foreign Minister in Mykola Azarov's government under the presidency of Viktor Yanukovych in 2012-2014.

Whilst initially, the case was classified as a suicide with the owners allegedly being in a different room at the time of the shooting, later the National Police announced that it has been changed to “premeditated murder”.

The body of the deceased has been sent for forensic examination. Law enforcement officers are establishing the circumstances of the event and criminal proceedings under part 1 of Art. 115 (premeditated murder) of the Criminal Code of Ukraine has been initiated.

Police confirmed the presence of three people in the house at the time: a couple and their guest: “All three were consuming alcohol. According to the woman, she was in another room when a guest shot himself in the head with the owner’s handgun.”

Police say that in order to establish all the circumstances of the event they are conducting primary investigative actions and assigning a number of examinations: forensic, molecular genetic, fingerprint, ballistic, as well as chemical.