India News | Death of Russians: IB Sleuths Visit Odisha Hotel; Crime Branch Forms Team to Help Probe

Bhubaneswar, Dec 29 (PTI) Sleuths of the Central Intelligence Bureau (IB) on Thursday visited the hotel for inspection in Odisha's Rayagada where two Russians, including a lawmaker, recently died, police sources said.

The IB officials visited different parts of the hotel, talked to the employees and checked CCTV footage.

Also Read | Riya Kumari Murder Case: Cops Investigating Financial Motive Behind Killing of Jharkhand-Based Actress and YouTuber.

They also visited Rayagada police station and the Siriguda crematorium where bodies of Russian lawmaker and businessman Pavel Antov and his fellow traveller Vladimir Bidenov died, the sources said.

Antov (65) died after allegedly falling from the hotel's third floor on December 24 while Bidenov was found dead in his room on December 22.

Also Read | Indian-American Rajeev Badyal Among 30 Selected by Kamala Harris To Serve on National Space Council’s Users Advisory Group.

Meanwhile, a Crime Branch (CB) team consisting of four people including two forensic experts was formed to assist the CID probing into the deaths, according to a statement issued here.

The new team headed by a deputy superintendent of police level officer 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 CID-CB is in the process of contacting family members of the deceased persons to cross-check the veracity of information collected during the examination of two other Russians - Pansasenko Natalia (44) and Turov Mikhail (64) – who were with Antov and Bidenov.

The four-member group of Russians and their Delhi-based travel guide and interpreter Jitendra Singh had checked in to the hotel on December 21.

“Both the Russian tourists are fully cooperating with the enquiry,” the statement said.

The CID team also questioned Jitendra Singh, it said adding: “The CID-CB Team has further collected copies of documents regarding their travel in India.”

The post-mortem report of the Russian MP indicates that he died of internal injury after a fall, while that of Bidenov point to a heart attack as the cause of death, police said.

The last rites of the two deceased have been completed with the consent of their family members and the Russian Embassy.

Antov's viscera samples were not preserved before his body was consigned into flames. However, those of Bidenov were preserved.

Asked about the reason for Russians visiting Rayagada, a local administrative officer said that they come to see tribal life.

Visit of Russians to the undivided Koraput district also stems from a unit of the Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL), which was built in collaboration with Russia in 1965, an official said.

Rayagada was bifurcated from Koraput and made a separate district in 1992.

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)