Russia opens criminal case after local official killed in Stavropol explosion
Published by Global Banking & Finance Review®
Posted on May 29, 2025
1 min readLast updated: January 23, 2026

Published by Global Banking & Finance Review®
Posted on May 29, 2025
1 min readLast updated: January 23, 2026

A criminal case is launched in Russia after an explosion in Stavropol kills a local official and another man. Investigations focus on murder and illegal explosives.
(Reuters) -Russia opened a criminal case on Thursday after two men, including a local government official who had fought in Ukraine, were killed in an explosion in the southern city of Stavropol, Russia's Investigative Committee and the regional governor said.
Zaur Gurtsiev, a city official who was due to be appointed to Stavropol's regional administration, and another unidentified man, were killed.
Video footage published on social media showed two men standing close to some parked cars and a bench when a bright light filled the screen and the footage cut out.
Russia's Investigative Committee, which probes serious crimes, said the bodies of two men with multiple injuries had been discovered on Thursday outside a multi-storey building and that criminal cases investigating murder and the illegal possession of explosives had been opened.
Stavropol Region Governor Vladimir Vladimirov and other officials offered their condolences to Gurtsiev and his family.
(Writing by Alexander Marrow; editing by Guy Faulconbridge)
A local government official and another man were killed in an explosion in Stavropol, leading to the opening of a criminal case.
The victims included Zaur Gurtsiev, a city official set to join the regional administration, and another unidentified man.
The Investigative Committee stated that the bodies of the two men with multiple injuries were found outside a multi-storey building.
Stavropol Region Governor Vladimir Vladimirov and other officials expressed their condolences to Gurtsiev and his family.
Video footage on social media showed two men near parked cars and a bench just before the explosion occurred.
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