Who was Nikolai Glushkov? The Russian exile and friend of Vladimir Putin critic Boris Berezovsky found dead at his London home

Nikolai Glushkov was found dead in London

Russian exile Nikolai Glushkov has been found dead at his London home.

He was a close associate of late tycoon Boris Berezovsky, an outspoken critic of Russian leader Vladimir Putin.

Mr Berezovsky was found hanged at his home near Ascot, Berkshire, in March 2013, aged 67. A coroner recorded an open verdict after an inquest.

The exact circumstances of Mr Glushkov’s death are not yet known and police have not yet formally identified him.

Who was Russian businessman Mr Glushkov?

Mr Glushkov left Russia after he received a two-year suspended prison sentence for fraud in 2006 from a Moscow court and moved to London.

He was a former deputy director of Aeroflot, a Russian airline company.

In March last year, he was handed a second eight-year sentence in absentia and a one million Russian Ruble fine for allegedly defrauding the airline firm of $122 million during his tenure as finance director there in the late 1990s.

Mr Glushkov lived in the UK, in a home in New Malden, Kingston, south-west London, after being granted political asylum in the country in 2010.

What do we know so far about his death?

Glushkov, a former senior Russian executive linked to late Kremlin opponent Boris Berezovsky was found dead in unexplained circumstances at his New Malden home 
AFP/Getty Images

Counter-terror police have launched an investigation after he was found dead at his home in New Malden, south-west London, on Monday night.

The Met Police this afternoon confirmed the death of Mr Glushkov was being treated as "unexplained".

Scotland Yard in statement said: “The death is currently being treated as an unexplained. If there is a change in the status of the investigation, an update will be provided.

“At this stage the Met Police Counter Terrorism Command is leading the investigation as a precaution because of associations that the man is believed to have had.

“There is no evidence to suggest a link to the incident in Salisbury.”

Who was his close associate Mr Berezovsky and what were the circumstances of his death?

Boris Berezovsky (Picture: AFP/Getty)

Mr Berezovsky was once one of the most powerful businessmen in Russia.

The tycoon amassed a fortune in the 1990s following the privatisation of state assets after the collapse of Soviet communism.

He was an outspoken critic of Russian leader Mr Putin.

He was found hanged at his home near Ascot, Berkshire, in March 2013, aged 67.

A coroner recorded an open verdict after an inquest.

Due to "contradictory" evidence, the coroner said he could not prove beyond all reasonable doubt that he either took his own life or was unlawfully killed.

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