Russian scientist who developed Covid vaccine found dead, was strangled with belt: Report
NEW DELHI,MAR 4 : Russian scientist Andrey Botikov, who helped to create the Russian Covid-19 vaccine Sputnik V, was found dead in his apartment on Thursday in Moscow. He was strangled to death with a belt, Russian media reports said Saturday.
Botikov (47) worked as a senior researcher at the Gamaleya National Research Center for Ecology and Mathematics, Russian News Agency TASS quoted the Investigative Committee of the Russian Federation as saying.
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The suspect was arrested hours after Botikov’s body was found, the federal investigative agency said in the statement.
According to investigators, the 29-year-old suspect strangled Botikov with a belt during an argument. Law enforcement agencies said the murder was a domestic crime and the result of a conflict, the report said.
The investigating authority in Russia said that the death of the virologist is being investigated as a murder.
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“The location of the attacker was established in short order. During the interrogation, he pled guilty and was charged. The defendant has a previous criminal record, as he stood trial on charges of committing a serious crime. In the near future, the investigation plans to petition the court to place the defendant in custody pending trial,” the Investigative Committee said.
The virologist was awarded by the Russian President Vladimir Putin with the Order of Merit for the Fatherland award for his work on the Covid vaccine in 2021. Botikov was one of 18 scientists who developed the Sputnik V vaccine in 2020,
-PTI
