Nikita Isaev

Nikita Isaev
Born	12 November 1978  Moscow
Died	16 November 2019  (aged 41)
Occupation	Politician

Nikita Olegovich Isaev (Russian: Никита Олегович Исаев; 12 November 1978 – 16 November 2019)[1] was a Russian politician, journalist, and anti-corruption and environmental activist.

Before his death, Isaev was the former head of the New Russia movement and was appointed as an adviser for regional development by Sergei Mironov. In 2019, he died on a train from Tambov to Moscow. The official cause of death was a heart attack.[2][3] In 2021, a joint-investigation by Der Spiegel, Bellingcat and The Insider linked the Federal Security Service (FSB) unit that allegedly poisoned the opposition leader Alexei Navalny to Isaev's death, saying that FSB agents had followed him since December 2018.[4][5] The investigation noted that Isaev was loyal to the Kremlin but was known to have a fraught relationship with the FSB, which makes it difficult to identify a possible motive for him to be killed by the FSB. However, they noted that Isaev traveled abroad frequently, and had purchased flight tickets for a family trip to Miami on 5 December 2019 (three weeks after his death). The investigators therefore consider the possibility that the FSB may have suspected that Isaev was about to defect.[6][7][8]

References

1. "Биография Никиты Исаева" [Biography of Nikita Isaev]. ria.ru. 16 November 2019. Retrieved 23 October 2021.
2. Times <[e-mail]> (https://bylinetimes.com/), Byline (2019-11-18). "The Fate of Putin's Critics – Another Russian Journalist Dies Suddenly". Byline Times. Retrieved 2021-01-30. {{cite web}}: External link in |last= (help)
3. "Последняя ночь политика Никиты Исаева" [The last night of politician Nikita Isaev]. ГОЛОС АМЕРИКИ (in Russian). 18 November 2019. Retrieved 2021-01-30.
4. "Navalny Poison Squad Implicated in Murders of Three Russian Activists". bellingcat. 2021-01-27. Retrieved 2021-01-30.
5. "Bellingcat связал сотрудников ФСБ, следивших за Навальным, со смертями еще трех политических активистов" [Bellingcat linked FSB officers monitoring Navalny with deaths of three more political activists]. BBC News Русская служба (in Russian). Retrieved 2021-01-30.
6. "Navalny's Alleged FSB Poisoners Linked to Deaths of Journalists, Activists – Investigation". The Moscow Times. 27 January 2021. Retrieved 23 October 2021.
7. "Журналист, активист, «патриот» — кого убивали отравители из НИИ-2 ФСБ" [Journalist, activist, "patriot" - who was killed by poisoners from the FSB NII-2]. The Insider. Retrieved 23 October 2021.
8. "The FSB's busy, busy bees 'Bellingcat' and its partners release a new investigative report tracking the Russian agents who allegedly tailed and tried to kill Alexey Navalny". Meduza.io. 27 January 2021. Retrieved 23 October 2021.