A prominent Russian millionaire with high-level ties to the Kremlin has
been found dead inside a Washington hotel, a Russian official and a
senior U.S. official told ABC News.
Mikhail Lesin, the former head of media affairs for the Russian
government who's been accused of curtailing the country’s press
freedoms, had been staying at The DuPont Circle Hotel when he was found
Thursday, according to officials.
It's unclear why the long-time adviser to Russian President Vladimir Putin
was in Washington, but the Metropolitan Police Department is now
investigating his death. On Thursday, U.S. authorities notified the
Russian embassy in Washington that one of its citizens had died, and
Russian officials are now working with American authorities to determine
the circumstances of the death, the embassy told ABC News in a
statement.
Citing an ongoing investigation, an MPD spokesman would only confirm the department is conducting a “death investigation."
Lesin is credited with creating Russia Today, the English-language news
network backed by the Russian government. Now known as RT, the network
“provides an alternative perspective on major global events, and
acquaints an international audience with the Russian viewpoint,”
according to its website.
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