Russian nationals' death: Post-mortem report rules out foul play, says Odisha Police

"The post-mortem report of the Russian businessman and lawmaker ruled out foul play. The report said the death was due to internal injuries after falling from a height. The other death was due to heart attack," said Odisha Police.

Odisha CID-Crime Branch stepped up its probe into the 'unnatural' death of two Russian nationals in Rayagada.

"The post-mortem was conducted and their viscera samples have been preserved for further scientific investigation. We are looking at all the aspects of the case," said a Crime Branch officer.

CID-Crime Branch interrogated two Russian nationals, who accompanied the deceased and their interpreter at the Crime Branch headquarters in Cuttack on Wednesday. The trio were on their way to Kolkata from Rayagada on Tuesday, when they were asked to come back and join the investigation by the Crime Branch.

The team of CID-Crime Branch, headed by a senior officer, will visit Rayagada on Thursday for further investigation. The team will visit the hotel where the deceased and two other Russian tourists were staying, among other places.

According to the CID-Crime Branch, preliminary investigation has revealed that the Russian nationals were on a trip to the tribal region of Odisha. The Crime Branch said it was conducting background checks on all of them, including their travel history.

On why the bodies were cremated and not sent to their families in Russia, the Crime Branch officer said the bodies were cremated by the police only after offical consent and undertaking from their family members and persons accompanying them.

"The families requested the police to send the ashes of the deceased," the officer said.

Earlier, on Tuesday, Odisha Director General of Police Sunil Kumar Bansal ordered the CID-Crime Branch to take over the inquiry into the 'unnatural' death of two Russian nationals.

The DGP said, "Four Russian tourists came to Rayagada district. One of them died, probably because of a heart issue. We initiated an inquiry and a case was registered. A post-mortem was conducted."

"After two days, another person among them died in unnatural circumstances. We instructed the CID to assist in the inquiry and are in touch with the Russian consulate in Kolkata," he added.

The deceased were identified as B Vladimir and Powel Anthem, from their passports.

According to sources, Anthem jumped off the hotel's third floor in an apparent suicide bid. Anthem's guide arranged an ambulance and rushed him to the district headquarters hospital (DHH).

However, he was declared dead after some time at the hospital.Anthem jumped off the hotel's third floor soon after attending the funeral of Russian tourist Vladimir Videnov, who had been found dead inside the hotel room on Thursday (December 22), sources said.

"The back-to-back deaths of two Russian tourists in Rayagada town have become a matter of concern for the district administration," sources said.

Four Russian tourists, including Vladimir and Anthem, had checked into the hotel on December 21 after visiting Daringbadi in the Kandhamal district. (ANI)