Russian Secret Service officer dies by suicide inside the Kremlin

An officer in Russia’s Secret Service, the Federal Protective Service (FSO), died by suicide while on duty inside the Kremlin, the Telegram-based news channel Baza reported on Monday November 30. This was also reported by the Russian state news agency TASS, citing an unnamed source in law enforcement.

According to Baza, the deceased is named Mikhail Zakharov. His colleagues told Baza that the reason for his suicide “could be the indifferent attitude of the FSO leadership to his working conditions, as well as frequent overtime.”

Baza claimed that Zakharov served in the unit responsible for Russian President Vladimir Putin’s personal security.

However, an unnamed TASS source in law enforcement denied these allegations. The TASS source maintained that the “most likely” reason for the suicide was the officer’s “personal problems.” “No, it’s not connected to the conditions of service,” he told TASS.

According to the TASS source, law enforcement agencies are investigating the incident.