Putin’s puppet found dead of ‘stabbing or gunshot wounds’ in Moldovan breakaway as investigation opens into communist leader’s murder
Oleg Khorzhan, 47, was found dead by his wife in Transnistria, the breakaway region’s Communist Party leader known as a ‘Moscow proxy’.
A murder investigation has been launched after Vladimir Putin’s puppet politician was found dead in Transnistria, a Moldovan breakaway region bordering Ukraine.
Oleg Khorzhan, 47, was found by his wife with ‘multiple stab wounds’, according to reports. Other reports said he died of gunshot wounds.
Khorjan, leader of the Communist Party of Transnistria – a statelet guarded by 1,500 Russian army ‘peacekeepers’ – could become the region’s leader if Putin invaded Moldova.
He was staunchly pro-Russian and returned to politics with Moscow’s support after being convicted and sentenced to four years in prison for violence against a government official.
The Moldovan separatist leader was released eight months ago and was known as a ‘Moscow proxy’.
Oleg Khorzhan, 47, was found dead by his wife with ‘multiple stab wounds’, other reports said she died of gunshot wounds.
The Communist Party leader was known as a ‘Moscow proxy’ and claimed that his territory survived only because of Russian aid.
He returned to Moscow after spending four years in prison for violence against a government official
He insisted that the region – self-governing since the end of the Soviet period – had survived ‘only thanks to Russia’s help’.
Gennady Zyuganov, leader of the Russian Communist Party, said: ‘Oleg Khorzhan is dead… killed at home.
‘We demand an immediate investigation.’
The Pridnestrovsky Lesnik Telegram channel commented: ‘Khorzhan’s wife found his body near an unlocked safe in one of his rooms. The safe was empty.
‘Did they open the safe to make it look like there was a robbery? It would be absurd.’
Earlier this year, opposition leader Khorzhan visited Moscow and returned saying he had been promised ‘maximum support for our republic from Russia’ by top pro-Putin politicians.
In March, authorities in Transnistria claimed they had foiled an assassination attempt on the region’s president, Vadim Krasnoselsky, which they alleged was carried out by the SBU secret service in neighboring Ukraine.
If Russia invaded Moldova, the pro-Putin politician would likely become the leader of the breakaway region of Transnistria
The SBU denied the allegations and called it a ‘provocation by the Kremlin’.
Moldova, Europe’s poorest state, has accused Russia of using Transnistria to destabilize the country.
Some analysts believe Putin is eyeing an invasion of Moldova, a former part of the old Soviet Union, as he seeks to build a new empire.