1 00:00:00,240 --> 00:00:05,080 Speaker 1: Something strange is going on. Who is killing Russian billionaires? 2 00:00:05,400 --> 00:00:08,640 Speaker 2: Another Russian oligarch has been found dead. Reports suggests that 3 00:00:08,680 --> 00:00:11,200 Speaker 2: he hanged himself, fell out of a window. 4 00:00:11,000 --> 00:00:14,520 Speaker 1: Slashed his wrists, was poisoned, murdered his whole family. 5 00:00:15,960 --> 00:00:18,799 Speaker 3: Last year, more than a dozen Russian oligarchs died in 6 00:00:18,880 --> 00:00:22,239 Speaker 3: the space of nine months. Many of the deaths are 7 00:00:22,320 --> 00:00:27,120 Speaker 3: suspicious with links to the Kremlin. This is sad Oligach, 8 00:00:27,440 --> 00:00:32,400 Speaker 3: an investigation into these recently dead Russian billionaires. It's created 9 00:00:32,400 --> 00:00:37,480 Speaker 3: by me jake Hanrahan and my colleague Sergey Slipchenkov. Sad 10 00:00:37,520 --> 00:00:43,080 Speaker 3: Oligach is a h eleven production for Kulso Media and iHeartRadio. 11 00:00:50,880 --> 00:00:54,080 Speaker 3: In the first episode of this series, we looked into 12 00:00:54,120 --> 00:00:58,440 Speaker 3: one of three family annihilations in the Russian tycoon community, 13 00:00:59,120 --> 00:01:04,440 Speaker 3: three within the of one year. Whole families, including children, 14 00:01:05,000 --> 00:01:09,199 Speaker 3: murdered by their own father. That this happened three times 15 00:01:09,240 --> 00:01:13,680 Speaker 3: in a year within such a similar demographic is very unusual, 16 00:01:13,760 --> 00:01:18,479 Speaker 3: to say the least. One of these family killings that's 17 00:01:18,600 --> 00:01:23,679 Speaker 3: particularly gruesome and suspicious is the killing of the Proto 18 00:01:23,920 --> 00:01:28,280 Speaker 3: Sena family. This happened less than a month after the 19 00:01:28,319 --> 00:01:33,640 Speaker 3: Melnikov killings that we spoke about in episode one. On 20 00:01:33,680 --> 00:01:38,560 Speaker 3: April nineteenth, twenty twenty two, Russian businessman Serge proto Zenya, 21 00:01:38,720 --> 00:01:42,440 Speaker 3: fifty five, was found hanging from a railing inside his 22 00:01:42,520 --> 00:01:45,840 Speaker 3: Spanish holiday villa in the affluent town of Loret del Mar. 23 00:01:46,400 --> 00:01:50,680 Speaker 3: His wife, Natalia and teenage daughter Maria were also found dead. 24 00:01:51,520 --> 00:01:55,040 Speaker 3: They'd been beaten with a blunt object and hacked to 25 00:01:55,160 --> 00:01:58,640 Speaker 3: death with an axe. The room they were found in 26 00:01:58,840 --> 00:02:03,040 Speaker 3: was a bloodbath. The Spanish police ruled the incident as 27 00:02:03,080 --> 00:02:08,000 Speaker 3: a murder suicide. According to them, Sergo proto Sena had 28 00:02:08,160 --> 00:02:11,240 Speaker 3: beaten his wife and daughter in their head, killed them 29 00:02:11,280 --> 00:02:16,160 Speaker 3: with the axe, and then hanged himself afterwards. The only 30 00:02:16,200 --> 00:02:20,400 Speaker 3: surviving member of the immediate family is Sergio Protozenya's adult 31 00:02:20,560 --> 00:02:25,320 Speaker 3: son Fedl Now cursed your mind back to episode one, 32 00:02:25,720 --> 00:02:29,360 Speaker 3: when Professor Elizabeth Yadley said that it was unusual that 33 00:02:29,480 --> 00:02:32,760 Speaker 3: a family annihilation would spare any of the children. 34 00:02:33,120 --> 00:02:37,400 Speaker 4: The very fact that biological children of the alleged perpetrator 35 00:02:37,440 --> 00:02:39,919 Speaker 4: have survived tells me that this is very different from 36 00:02:39,960 --> 00:02:42,880 Speaker 4: any family annihilation I've come across before, because when the 37 00:02:42,880 --> 00:02:46,520 Speaker 4: perpetrator takes their family out, they take everybody out. They 38 00:02:46,520 --> 00:02:48,480 Speaker 4: make sure that those children are home for the weekend, 39 00:02:48,880 --> 00:02:51,080 Speaker 4: or that they're all together as a family. They don't 40 00:02:51,200 --> 00:02:52,880 Speaker 4: leave leave anybody behind. 41 00:02:53,760 --> 00:02:57,120 Speaker 3: Luckily for Fedor, he decided to stay in France instead 42 00:02:57,160 --> 00:03:00,320 Speaker 3: of joining his family at the villa in Spain. This 43 00:03:00,600 --> 00:03:04,960 Speaker 3: likely saved his life. Federer has since spoken out about 44 00:03:05,000 --> 00:03:08,240 Speaker 3: the killings, saying that he doesn't believe the official story. 45 00:03:08,880 --> 00:03:11,840 Speaker 3: He thinks someone else killed his family and then staged 46 00:03:11,880 --> 00:03:13,760 Speaker 3: it to make it look as if his father had 47 00:03:13,760 --> 00:03:18,079 Speaker 3: committed the awful murders. The local Spanish police have said 48 00:03:18,120 --> 00:03:21,079 Speaker 3: that they still think it's likely to be a murder suicide. 49 00:03:21,560 --> 00:03:25,639 Speaker 3: The investigations are still ongoing until the case is closed. 50 00:03:25,919 --> 00:03:29,200 Speaker 3: The police aren't releasing the autopsy reports of the deceased. 51 00:03:30,080 --> 00:03:33,720 Speaker 3: So why would Sergio Protosenya, a man worth half a 52 00:03:33,760 --> 00:03:37,880 Speaker 3: billion dollars, murder his wife and daughter with an ax 53 00:03:38,080 --> 00:03:42,720 Speaker 3: before taking his own life To try and maybe understand that, 54 00:03:43,200 --> 00:03:47,440 Speaker 3: we need to understand who this guy actually was. Let's 55 00:03:47,520 --> 00:03:50,760 Speaker 3: go back to when he made his money. The nineties 56 00:03:51,080 --> 00:03:52,480 Speaker 3: a wild time in Russia. 57 00:03:55,400 --> 00:03:58,000 Speaker 4: The red flag came down over the Kremlin tonight as 58 00:03:58,040 --> 00:04:01,400 Speaker 4: President Kovatrov resigned and brought to an end seven decades 59 00:04:01,440 --> 00:04:03,200 Speaker 4: of Communist ruled in the Soviet Union. 60 00:04:03,800 --> 00:04:07,040 Speaker 3: Russia saw the collapse of the Soviet Union in December 61 00:04:07,240 --> 00:04:12,320 Speaker 3: nineteen ninety one. After that, for the following decade, Russia 62 00:04:12,360 --> 00:04:17,240 Speaker 3: had its first free elections, formed a new constitution, privatized 63 00:04:17,360 --> 00:04:21,680 Speaker 3: state assets, endured bombings in Moscow, saw the rise of 64 00:04:21,760 --> 00:04:27,520 Speaker 3: violent mafias, and fought two brutal wards in Chechnya. In 65 00:04:27,560 --> 00:04:30,760 Speaker 3: the midst of this turmoil, oligaks really got their start. 66 00:04:31,160 --> 00:04:36,160 Speaker 3: They thrived amongst the lawlessness and newfound freedoms. The frantic 67 00:04:36,200 --> 00:04:40,520 Speaker 3: privatization of previously government owned companies after the fall of 68 00:04:40,520 --> 00:04:44,880 Speaker 3: the Soviet Union turned into a businessman's wild West. This 69 00:04:45,080 --> 00:04:48,920 Speaker 3: was preceded by an economic program that then Russian President 70 00:04:49,000 --> 00:04:54,160 Speaker 3: Boris Yeltsin introduced in nineteen ninety one. It was known 71 00:04:54,240 --> 00:04:58,760 Speaker 3: as shock therapy. The idea was to rapidly flood Russia 72 00:04:58,839 --> 00:05:01,919 Speaker 3: with hard and fast kept list systems to jolt the 73 00:05:01,960 --> 00:05:06,000 Speaker 3: country into a fully functional free market in a short 74 00:05:06,000 --> 00:05:10,360 Speaker 3: space of time. Shock therapy quickly removed subsidies for the 75 00:05:10,360 --> 00:05:14,760 Speaker 3: people and redistributed profits to the top taken from the 76 00:05:14,800 --> 00:05:19,000 Speaker 3: working class to make the elites fatter. Your average worker 77 00:05:19,040 --> 00:05:23,360 Speaker 3: got poorer, and the rich folks got richer. Yeltsin did 78 00:05:23,360 --> 00:05:26,160 Speaker 3: this to battle Soviet hardliners who wanted to keep the 79 00:05:26,200 --> 00:05:30,880 Speaker 3: old authoritarian communist system resisting the new wave of capitalism 80 00:05:31,160 --> 00:05:35,000 Speaker 3: that the president had introduced to Russia. This transition from 81 00:05:35,160 --> 00:05:38,640 Speaker 3: one system to the other needed to be handled carefully 82 00:05:38,800 --> 00:05:43,880 Speaker 3: and slowly, but Yeltsin didn't want to wait. Encouraged by 83 00:05:43,920 --> 00:05:49,000 Speaker 3: the UN's International Monetary Fund, who were surprised a big 84 00:05:49,080 --> 00:05:53,960 Speaker 3: advocates of shock therapy for Russia, Yeltsin lent full force 85 00:05:54,120 --> 00:05:57,880 Speaker 3: into it. It was a complete disaster. The value of 86 00:05:57,960 --> 00:06:01,960 Speaker 3: Russia's currency, the ruble plummet, people lost their savings due 87 00:06:01,960 --> 00:06:05,560 Speaker 3: to high inflation rates, and the social welfare system was gutted. 88 00:06:06,080 --> 00:06:09,719 Speaker 3: But hey, at least they could import levis now. Shock 89 00:06:09,760 --> 00:06:12,279 Speaker 3: therapy in Russia paid the way for the madness of 90 00:06:12,320 --> 00:06:16,040 Speaker 3: the oligarchs when the USSR collapsed. Was like giving loaded 91 00:06:16,040 --> 00:06:21,200 Speaker 3: guns to an already blood thirsty militia. After the collapse, 92 00:06:21,360 --> 00:06:25,720 Speaker 3: shock therapy led to further hyperinflation. By nineteen ninety four, 93 00:06:26,080 --> 00:06:30,560 Speaker 3: prices for your average consumer had risen almost two thousandfold. 94 00:06:31,080 --> 00:06:34,159 Speaker 3: As writer Greg Rosselski puts it, a candy bar that 95 00:06:34,240 --> 00:06:38,120 Speaker 3: had cost one dollar now cost two thousand dollars. In 96 00:06:38,160 --> 00:06:41,520 Speaker 3: the midst of this economic nightmare, the new Russian state 97 00:06:41,600 --> 00:06:45,839 Speaker 3: issued what was known as privatization checks. These were essentially 98 00:06:45,960 --> 00:06:48,520 Speaker 3: vouchers that could be used to buy shares of state 99 00:06:48,600 --> 00:06:51,760 Speaker 3: business at public auctions, which were taking. 100 00:06:51,440 --> 00:06:53,159 Speaker 1: Place all across Russia. 101 00:06:53,600 --> 00:06:57,560 Speaker 3: Around one hundred and forty eight million of these vouchers 102 00:06:57,600 --> 00:07:02,000 Speaker 3: were issued to Russian citizens built up money amidst the chaos, 103 00:07:02,040 --> 00:07:06,440 Speaker 3: often via criminal enterprises, could now exploit this vulture system 104 00:07:06,720 --> 00:07:10,720 Speaker 3: and take over a big infrastructure. Rossolski wrote about this, saying, 105 00:07:10,960 --> 00:07:13,600 Speaker 3: quote the people on their way to become in Russia's 106 00:07:13,640 --> 00:07:17,600 Speaker 3: first class of oligaks scoured the nation trying to buy 107 00:07:17,640 --> 00:07:20,960 Speaker 3: as many privatization checks as they could. Many of the 108 00:07:21,000 --> 00:07:24,280 Speaker 3: oligarchs had come from nothing. They'd initially gotten rich, but 109 00:07:24,440 --> 00:07:27,280 Speaker 3: not mega rich, by hustling in the black market or 110 00:07:27,320 --> 00:07:30,920 Speaker 3: through legitimate businesses. When the Soviet Union first allowed a 111 00:07:30,920 --> 00:07:35,440 Speaker 3: private entrepreneurship in the late nineteen eighties, the oligarks went 112 00:07:35,520 --> 00:07:38,920 Speaker 3: on a buying spree, purchasing hundreds of thousands of voltures, 113 00:07:39,120 --> 00:07:41,920 Speaker 3: each of which were were ten thousand rubles or about 114 00:07:42,000 --> 00:07:46,280 Speaker 3: forty dollars or less. Back in the nineties end quote. Now, 115 00:07:46,440 --> 00:07:49,320 Speaker 3: back then, your average Russian, who barely had a pot 116 00:07:49,320 --> 00:07:52,440 Speaker 3: to piss in due to hyperinflation, had little use for 117 00:07:52,480 --> 00:07:55,240 Speaker 3: these vultures. They had no money, so they couldn't use 118 00:07:55,280 --> 00:07:58,240 Speaker 3: them to buy shares in anything, and so they were 119 00:07:58,280 --> 00:08:01,400 Speaker 3: eager to sell the privatization so that they could scrape 120 00:08:01,400 --> 00:08:04,720 Speaker 3: some money together to try and provide for their families. 121 00:08:05,080 --> 00:08:07,720 Speaker 3: People who had money brought them from the poor at 122 00:08:07,760 --> 00:08:11,760 Speaker 3: a low price. Oligaks in the making stacked huge amounts 123 00:08:11,760 --> 00:08:15,000 Speaker 3: of these checks up, exploiting the poor people of Russia 124 00:08:15,120 --> 00:08:19,000 Speaker 3: to then buy undervalued stocks in new private businesses that 125 00:08:19,080 --> 00:08:23,960 Speaker 3: were previously held by the USSR. Soon those stocks rose, 126 00:08:24,680 --> 00:08:28,080 Speaker 3: oligarchs were laughing all the way to the bank. Often 127 00:08:28,320 --> 00:08:31,240 Speaker 3: the same working class people who sold their vouchers to 128 00:08:31,280 --> 00:08:35,360 Speaker 3: the oligachs would eventually end up taking low paid jobs 129 00:08:35,400 --> 00:08:38,520 Speaker 3: at the companies brought out by the oligarchs with the 130 00:08:38,559 --> 00:08:42,640 Speaker 3: help of the vouchers. The privatization checks ended in nineteen 131 00:08:42,760 --> 00:08:45,880 Speaker 3: ninety four. By then, though around seventy percent of the 132 00:08:45,920 --> 00:08:50,360 Speaker 3: new Russian economy was already privatized. It's with this chaotic 133 00:08:50,440 --> 00:08:56,160 Speaker 3: backdrop that now deceased and accused family murderer Sergei Protozenya 134 00:08:56,440 --> 00:09:00,720 Speaker 3: worked as a deputy director for taco Cell Neft Gas. 135 00:09:01,320 --> 00:09:05,600 Speaker 3: This oil and gas company was founded in nineteen ninety four. 136 00:09:07,280 --> 00:09:11,360 Speaker 3: Years later, Protosenya stayed within the industry but moved jobs, 137 00:09:11,640 --> 00:09:14,680 Speaker 3: working as the head accountant for taco Cell Neft gas 138 00:09:14,720 --> 00:09:20,520 Speaker 3: linked firm Novotech. Novotech is Russia's second largest natural gas company. 139 00:09:21,280 --> 00:09:25,720 Speaker 3: Protosena was admitted to the prestigious position as a board 140 00:09:25,720 --> 00:09:29,760 Speaker 3: member of Novotech, of which he owned a zero point 141 00:09:29,840 --> 00:09:34,880 Speaker 3: five steak with around two point three million shares. This 142 00:09:34,960 --> 00:09:38,839 Speaker 3: steak alone was worth around two hundred and thirty five 143 00:09:39,040 --> 00:09:44,000 Speaker 3: million dollars. Novotech makes around ten billion dollars a year 144 00:09:44,240 --> 00:09:48,720 Speaker 3: and has around seventeen billion barrels of proved oil reserves. 145 00:09:49,200 --> 00:09:53,640 Speaker 3: Their extraction operations are mostly in Western Siberia, which accounts 146 00:09:53,679 --> 00:09:57,560 Speaker 3: for eighty percent of Russia's national gas and around fifteen 147 00:09:57,600 --> 00:10:02,560 Speaker 3: percent of global natural gas. Needless to say, Novotech is 148 00:10:02,640 --> 00:10:06,040 Speaker 3: a serious company that makes the Kremlin a lot of 149 00:10:06,240 --> 00:10:12,280 Speaker 3: money in tax. Novotech's chairman is Leonid Michelson, a Russian 150 00:10:12,360 --> 00:10:17,800 Speaker 3: Israeli oligarch worth around twenty billion dollars. He holds almost 151 00:10:17,880 --> 00:10:21,680 Speaker 3: thirty percent of the shares of Novatech in the same 152 00:10:21,760 --> 00:10:24,679 Speaker 3: year that Sergei proto Zenja was admitted to the board 153 00:10:24,679 --> 00:10:29,480 Speaker 3: of Novatech. Twenty fifteen, he resigned. Why, we don't really know. 154 00:10:30,200 --> 00:10:33,520 Speaker 3: He did have a lucrative side hustle though. He was 155 00:10:33,559 --> 00:10:37,800 Speaker 3: the co founder of Russian banking firm Full Bank. Now 156 00:10:38,000 --> 00:10:41,280 Speaker 3: not a lot is publicly known about Full Bank, neither 157 00:10:41,320 --> 00:10:45,040 Speaker 3: in Russia or in English language reports. What we have 158 00:10:45,160 --> 00:10:48,880 Speaker 3: found out is interesting. Goal proto Sena co founded this 159 00:10:48,960 --> 00:10:53,840 Speaker 3: bank with a businessman named Andre Makalov. He owned two 160 00:10:53,960 --> 00:10:59,240 Speaker 3: other banks, sibzots Bank and pro Banker. In twenty twenty four, 161 00:10:59,280 --> 00:11:03,160 Speaker 3: bank bought another bank named Pochto Bank. As you can see, 162 00:11:03,160 --> 00:11:06,680 Speaker 3: the names for these banks are not very adventurous. Full 163 00:11:06,679 --> 00:11:09,520 Speaker 3: Bank was doing well. By the looks of it. Protosenya 164 00:11:09,640 --> 00:11:13,840 Speaker 3: and Makalov were buying up other banks, absorbing them, increasing 165 00:11:13,880 --> 00:11:17,920 Speaker 3: their business and making profit. A year later, though, in 166 00:11:18,080 --> 00:11:22,400 Speaker 3: twenty twenty one, Full Bank had its financial license revot. 167 00:11:23,440 --> 00:11:27,200 Speaker 3: There's very little information out there about why this actually happened, 168 00:11:27,480 --> 00:11:48,600 Speaker 3: but surgery managed to find out Full Bank they lost 169 00:11:48,640 --> 00:11:53,240 Speaker 3: their license. It's quite hard to find out what actually happened. 170 00:11:53,280 --> 00:11:56,120 Speaker 5: What have you found A lot of information on Russian 171 00:11:56,200 --> 00:11:58,800 Speaker 5: sides kind of unreliable I found so far. I don't 172 00:11:58,800 --> 00:12:02,280 Speaker 5: know if they're plagiarizing or or if they get some 173 00:12:02,400 --> 00:12:04,960 Speaker 5: kind of state message, but a lot of articles will 174 00:12:05,040 --> 00:12:09,400 Speaker 5: have the same mistakes, like across different publications. A lot 175 00:12:09,440 --> 00:12:11,240 Speaker 5: of times they'll be saying the same things. For this 176 00:12:11,280 --> 00:12:13,960 Speaker 5: one is kind of hard to find because I think 177 00:12:14,040 --> 00:12:16,719 Speaker 5: everybody's been focusing on as death right, so it was 178 00:12:16,800 --> 00:12:18,120 Speaker 5: kind of hard to find the reason for it. They 179 00:12:18,120 --> 00:12:21,160 Speaker 5: would just be like, lost his license, that's it, and 180 00:12:21,200 --> 00:12:25,280 Speaker 5: I'm like, okay, why, and it's completely they don't talk 181 00:12:25,360 --> 00:12:29,040 Speaker 5: about it at all. Had to look a bit a 182 00:12:29,080 --> 00:12:32,880 Speaker 5: bit further back. It was twenty twenty one, and basically 183 00:12:32,880 --> 00:12:37,599 Speaker 5: what I could find was that the state government conducted investigation. 184 00:12:38,720 --> 00:12:43,360 Speaker 5: The official I guess the official reason is money laundering. 185 00:12:44,240 --> 00:12:48,880 Speaker 5: Also I saw some other reasons of being like giving 186 00:12:48,960 --> 00:12:51,079 Speaker 5: somebody a bank account when they're not supposed to get 187 00:12:51,080 --> 00:12:53,840 Speaker 5: it because their past critic is either expired or they 188 00:12:53,880 --> 00:12:56,800 Speaker 5: don't have a passport. Just kind of small things like 189 00:12:56,800 --> 00:12:59,920 Speaker 5: that that I feel like you could even just miss. 190 00:13:00,160 --> 00:13:02,720 Speaker 5: They didn't say that this is being done like maliciously, 191 00:13:02,840 --> 00:13:05,079 Speaker 5: but I guess there was reason enough but there was 192 00:13:05,120 --> 00:13:08,880 Speaker 5: speculation that the Russian government is China reduced the number 193 00:13:08,920 --> 00:13:13,120 Speaker 5: of like institutions that are open inside or like financial institutions. 194 00:13:13,440 --> 00:13:17,800 Speaker 5: I guess that datan't control and that allegedly that's why 195 00:13:17,840 --> 00:13:19,840 Speaker 5: they kind of gave the reason of money laundering and 196 00:13:19,880 --> 00:13:23,360 Speaker 5: all the other little reasons that kind of seem almost random, 197 00:13:23,760 --> 00:13:25,720 Speaker 5: but that they just wanted to shut it down again. 198 00:13:25,840 --> 00:13:29,120 Speaker 5: The official reason is money laundering and that they could 199 00:13:29,120 --> 00:13:32,280 Speaker 5: find that they found a bunch of like other illegal 200 00:13:32,320 --> 00:13:35,160 Speaker 5: activity at the bank which caused it to lose the license. 201 00:13:36,160 --> 00:13:36,760 Speaker 1: Interesting. 202 00:13:37,360 --> 00:13:39,760 Speaker 3: You would think if this bank was money loan during 203 00:13:40,000 --> 00:13:42,559 Speaker 3: that there would then be some kind of criminal charges, 204 00:13:42,640 --> 00:13:45,040 Speaker 3: right if you found anything like that. I didn't see 205 00:13:45,080 --> 00:13:46,080 Speaker 3: anything about that. 206 00:13:46,440 --> 00:13:48,120 Speaker 5: No, that's the thing that That's why I was kind 207 00:13:48,120 --> 00:13:50,480 Speaker 5: of like, it's weird because like, if an entire bank 208 00:13:50,520 --> 00:13:53,760 Speaker 5: loses its license over money laundering, I assume it's not 209 00:13:53,800 --> 00:13:55,960 Speaker 5: an issue with a single case or something you know, 210 00:13:56,400 --> 00:14:00,000 Speaker 5: or a single bank teller or some small person doing something. 211 00:14:00,280 --> 00:14:02,160 Speaker 5: To me, it seems like the entire bank was kind 212 00:14:02,160 --> 00:14:04,560 Speaker 5: of in on it, and you would think that you know, 213 00:14:04,640 --> 00:14:08,400 Speaker 5: there would be follow up by either resting or figuring 214 00:14:08,440 --> 00:14:11,040 Speaker 5: out who's responsible. I mean, maybe there's still an investigation 215 00:14:11,080 --> 00:14:13,080 Speaker 5: that we don't know about, but from what I can tell, 216 00:14:13,120 --> 00:14:15,600 Speaker 5: it kind of just lost his license and that's where 217 00:14:15,640 --> 00:14:16,480 Speaker 5: I was left off. 218 00:14:16,760 --> 00:14:19,080 Speaker 3: Yeah, that is odd. It seems odd to me. I'm 219 00:14:19,080 --> 00:14:24,119 Speaker 3: no expert on banking matters, but the guy Andre Makalov, 220 00:14:24,240 --> 00:14:27,240 Speaker 3: who also he's like the co founder of full Bank 221 00:14:27,400 --> 00:14:31,560 Speaker 3: with Protesena, he has several other banks, and from what 222 00:14:31,640 --> 00:14:35,040 Speaker 3: I've seen, they haven't had their licenses revoked. I would 223 00:14:35,040 --> 00:14:39,320 Speaker 3: imagine if it was real serious on the scale of right, 224 00:14:39,920 --> 00:14:42,640 Speaker 3: like money laundering for example, like I don't know HSBC 225 00:14:43,400 --> 00:14:47,560 Speaker 3: in the West were laundry money for literal cartels, saying 226 00:14:47,600 --> 00:14:49,960 Speaker 3: that nothing happened to them. They had to pay a 227 00:14:50,000 --> 00:14:53,040 Speaker 3: fine and nobody went to prison. I guess that's how 228 00:14:53,080 --> 00:14:56,080 Speaker 3: the banks are. But I didn't see any other evidence 229 00:14:56,080 --> 00:14:58,760 Speaker 3: that any of Macalov's other banks were shut down. 230 00:14:58,640 --> 00:14:59,560 Speaker 1: The jew No. 231 00:14:59,600 --> 00:15:02,600 Speaker 5: It seems like this is the only one specifically, and 232 00:15:02,680 --> 00:15:05,600 Speaker 5: from what understood, this is the only one. Patsena is 233 00:15:05,920 --> 00:15:07,320 Speaker 5: kind of like related to. 234 00:15:07,680 --> 00:15:09,160 Speaker 1: Right and when. 235 00:15:10,120 --> 00:15:13,000 Speaker 3: This is why I'm kind of struggling to understand a 236 00:15:13,040 --> 00:15:16,680 Speaker 3: little bit. Are these actual physical banks or are they 237 00:15:16,760 --> 00:15:19,000 Speaker 3: just banking firms that deal with stuff, or they have 238 00:15:19,080 --> 00:15:21,560 Speaker 3: like actual banks, they have employees as a teller, what 239 00:15:21,640 --> 00:15:24,240 Speaker 3: have you. Or is it some kind of firm that 240 00:15:24,400 --> 00:15:26,520 Speaker 3: operates I guess mostly online. 241 00:15:26,760 --> 00:15:29,440 Speaker 5: I've heard of it before. It's a pretty well known bank. 242 00:15:30,320 --> 00:15:33,040 Speaker 5: It had physical locations for sure. It's not like some 243 00:15:33,320 --> 00:15:37,880 Speaker 5: new just kind of like purely online bank. I mean, 244 00:15:38,000 --> 00:15:41,040 Speaker 5: I'm sure expanded to online banking, but it's definitely not 245 00:15:41,080 --> 00:15:43,040 Speaker 5: like one of these random bigs that pop up and 246 00:15:43,160 --> 00:15:44,880 Speaker 5: kind of offer online services. 247 00:15:45,880 --> 00:15:52,720 Speaker 3: In terms of the relation that this might have to 248 00:15:53,720 --> 00:15:57,200 Speaker 3: the killings, do you think there's something there or not? 249 00:15:57,920 --> 00:16:00,800 Speaker 3: I mean, I asked because if if you look at 250 00:16:00,880 --> 00:16:05,160 Speaker 3: for example, Professor Elizabeth Yadley was saying, she was saying, like, well, 251 00:16:06,040 --> 00:16:11,120 Speaker 3: these family annihilations will often happen when someone that's rich 252 00:16:11,400 --> 00:16:15,640 Speaker 3: and influential at least in their circles finds that their 253 00:16:15,640 --> 00:16:19,000 Speaker 3: life is about to kind of fall apart. Do you 254 00:16:19,040 --> 00:16:23,360 Speaker 3: think that this bank situation in twenty twenty one has 255 00:16:23,480 --> 00:16:27,120 Speaker 3: any any implications towards Prozena. 256 00:16:27,520 --> 00:16:28,080 Speaker 1: We don't know. 257 00:16:28,160 --> 00:16:30,520 Speaker 3: Maybe it really affected him, but I don't know, what 258 00:16:30,560 --> 00:16:31,480 Speaker 3: do you think. 259 00:16:32,240 --> 00:16:35,160 Speaker 5: I really don't think so, I mean, okay, like if 260 00:16:35,200 --> 00:16:37,480 Speaker 5: he lost his bank, and then all of a sudden, 261 00:16:37,520 --> 00:16:42,120 Speaker 5: he has no income, he's living below his means, he's 262 00:16:42,120 --> 00:16:45,280 Speaker 5: living in France, going vacation in Spain. I think he's fine. 263 00:16:45,800 --> 00:16:50,720 Speaker 5: I don't know his you know, entire like portfolio of businesses, 264 00:16:50,720 --> 00:16:52,720 Speaker 5: et cetera. But to me, it seems like nothing changed 265 00:16:53,160 --> 00:16:56,000 Speaker 5: after the bank closed. It's like one of his incomes, 266 00:16:56,160 --> 00:16:59,560 Speaker 5: you know, one of his many, many, many incomes, was closed. 267 00:16:59,560 --> 00:17:02,760 Speaker 5: And maybe he lost access to some bank accounts at most, 268 00:17:03,200 --> 00:17:05,240 Speaker 5: But to me, it seemed like he was living just fine, 269 00:17:06,000 --> 00:17:09,120 Speaker 5: living in France, going to Spain for like a couple 270 00:17:09,200 --> 00:17:12,000 Speaker 5: months for vacation. He didn't seem to be struggling in 271 00:17:12,040 --> 00:17:14,520 Speaker 5: any way. I want to say it was irrelevant. I mean, 272 00:17:14,520 --> 00:17:17,159 Speaker 5: who knows, maybe it was bigger than that, But the 273 00:17:17,200 --> 00:17:20,679 Speaker 5: bank lost its license in twenty twenty one, and he 274 00:17:20,880 --> 00:17:24,160 Speaker 5: was living fine well into twenty twenty two. I can't 275 00:17:24,200 --> 00:17:27,359 Speaker 5: say that like this was such a messive loss that 276 00:17:27,440 --> 00:17:28,320 Speaker 5: will led him to this. 277 00:17:28,520 --> 00:17:29,440 Speaker 1: I really don't think. 278 00:17:29,280 --> 00:17:31,840 Speaker 3: So, right, And I mean, the guy was worth the 279 00:17:31,960 --> 00:17:35,399 Speaker 3: most I think five hundred million dollars. 280 00:17:35,920 --> 00:17:38,240 Speaker 1: It's like, eh, oh, well. 281 00:17:38,119 --> 00:17:40,280 Speaker 5: It seems like a drop of the bucket, right, it does? Sure, 282 00:17:40,320 --> 00:17:42,840 Speaker 5: he didn't put all his eggs in one basket. I 283 00:17:42,840 --> 00:17:45,639 Speaker 5: think he's aware how Russia operates and that like you 284 00:17:45,680 --> 00:17:47,919 Speaker 5: can kind of lose these things at a drop of 285 00:17:47,960 --> 00:17:48,280 Speaker 5: a hat. 286 00:17:48,400 --> 00:17:50,040 Speaker 1: So I highly doubt. 287 00:17:49,800 --> 00:17:53,159 Speaker 5: He put everything into this one bank and lost it 288 00:17:53,200 --> 00:17:54,280 Speaker 5: when the license went. 289 00:17:54,680 --> 00:17:57,240 Speaker 3: That's true, and if you look at his history, he 290 00:17:57,280 --> 00:17:59,520 Speaker 3: definitely wasn't the guy that put his egg into one basket, 291 00:17:59,520 --> 00:18:02,600 Speaker 3: because he'still it off in the gas and oil industry 292 00:18:03,160 --> 00:18:05,800 Speaker 3: in various different roles, ended up being an accountant. 293 00:18:06,280 --> 00:18:07,960 Speaker 1: Then went on, you know, a member of the board. 294 00:18:08,000 --> 00:18:10,000 Speaker 3: Then he's also on the side he's got this bank 295 00:18:10,080 --> 00:18:12,160 Speaker 3: like he Yeah, he seems to be a guy diversifying 296 00:18:12,200 --> 00:18:12,760 Speaker 3: his funds. 297 00:18:13,000 --> 00:18:15,880 Speaker 5: Yeah, he was around, you know, like he's he's spread 298 00:18:15,920 --> 00:18:18,560 Speaker 5: as wealth like in a way of securing his own 299 00:18:18,840 --> 00:18:22,119 Speaker 5: future funds. I think he was fine. Honestly, again, I 300 00:18:22,160 --> 00:18:26,080 Speaker 5: can't exactly say what his entire portfolio is, but it 301 00:18:26,240 --> 00:18:27,680 Speaker 5: clearly isn't just four bank. 302 00:18:28,080 --> 00:18:32,360 Speaker 3: That said, there's still a possibility Protozenya was having money problems. 303 00:18:32,560 --> 00:18:34,720 Speaker 3: This is a recurring theme when it comes to people 304 00:18:34,800 --> 00:18:39,679 Speaker 3: who kill their clothes family. But remember Serge Protozenya's surviving 305 00:18:39,880 --> 00:18:44,160 Speaker 3: son Fedor he doesn't believe, or maybe doesn't want to believe, 306 00:18:44,480 --> 00:18:48,159 Speaker 3: that his father killed his mother and his sister. We 307 00:18:48,320 --> 00:18:51,480 Speaker 3: reached out to Fedor but got no response, which is 308 00:18:51,560 --> 00:18:54,040 Speaker 3: fair enough. He probably didn't want to talk about how 309 00:18:54,080 --> 00:18:58,160 Speaker 3: his whole family were murdered recently. When the killings happened. Initially, 310 00:18:58,160 --> 00:19:01,840 Speaker 3: though he did briefly speak out in the media, Fedor 311 00:19:01,920 --> 00:19:05,760 Speaker 3: said quote, my father is not a killer. He loved 312 00:19:05,760 --> 00:19:09,440 Speaker 3: my mother and especially Maria, my sister. He would never 313 00:19:09,480 --> 00:19:12,639 Speaker 3: do anything to harm them. I don't know what happened 314 00:19:12,680 --> 00:19:14,720 Speaker 3: that night, but I know that my dad did not 315 00:19:14,960 --> 00:19:15,640 Speaker 3: hurt them. 316 00:19:15,960 --> 00:19:16,600 Speaker 1: End quote. 317 00:19:17,240 --> 00:19:22,840 Speaker 3: Strangely enough, Novtech, the company where Sergei Protozenja was formerly 318 00:19:23,119 --> 00:19:26,720 Speaker 3: an executive of the board, seemed to share a similar 319 00:19:26,800 --> 00:19:31,480 Speaker 3: view to Fedor. In his statement released April twenty first, 320 00:19:31,600 --> 00:19:35,960 Speaker 3: twenty twenty two, just three days after the proto Senja killings, 321 00:19:36,520 --> 00:19:40,720 Speaker 3: Novtech said, quote, in relation to the tragic death of 322 00:19:40,760 --> 00:19:45,240 Speaker 3: a former member of Novtech's management board, Sergei Protozenja, and 323 00:19:45,320 --> 00:19:48,960 Speaker 3: members of his family, we extend our deepest sympathies to 324 00:19:49,040 --> 00:19:53,840 Speaker 3: all those affected by this tragic situation. Sergio Protozenja worked 325 00:19:53,840 --> 00:19:58,520 Speaker 3: in the Novtech group from nineteen ninety seven to twenty fifteen. 326 00:19:58,600 --> 00:20:01,879 Speaker 3: He established himself as a an outstanding person and a 327 00:20:01,920 --> 00:20:06,000 Speaker 3: wonderful family man, a strong professional who made a considerable 328 00:20:06,040 --> 00:20:11,840 Speaker 3: contribution to the formation and development of the company. Unfortunately, 329 00:20:12,280 --> 00:20:16,600 Speaker 3: speculations have emerged in the media about this topic, but 330 00:20:16,720 --> 00:20:22,159 Speaker 3: we are convinced that these speculations bear no relation to reality. 331 00:20:22,720 --> 00:20:26,160 Speaker 3: We hope that this Spanish law enforcement authorities will conduct 332 00:20:26,240 --> 00:20:32,680 Speaker 3: a thorough and impartial investigation to determine what happened ends quote. 333 00:20:33,600 --> 00:20:37,840 Speaker 3: So even Novertek feels so strongly that the conclusion that 334 00:20:37,880 --> 00:20:41,439 Speaker 3: Protozenya murdered his own family and then killed himself is 335 00:20:41,520 --> 00:20:45,639 Speaker 3: unlikely that they put out an official statement and so 336 00:20:45,640 --> 00:20:50,400 Speaker 3: soon after the killings. Now, with this case specifically, we've 337 00:20:50,440 --> 00:20:54,320 Speaker 3: found many different reports that tend to contradict each other. 338 00:20:54,680 --> 00:21:16,439 Speaker 3: The details are very confusing. To get a clear idea 339 00:21:16,480 --> 00:21:19,719 Speaker 3: of what's going on, we spoke to a local reporter 340 00:21:19,920 --> 00:21:23,880 Speaker 3: in Spain who covered the case. Sergei spoke to journalist 341 00:21:24,119 --> 00:21:25,159 Speaker 3: Victor Ricatcha. 342 00:21:26,680 --> 00:21:29,720 Speaker 5: Reading Western news and reading Russian news, I think gives 343 00:21:29,720 --> 00:21:32,120 Speaker 5: you one perspective, but I think the best is kind 344 00:21:32,119 --> 00:21:34,600 Speaker 5: of local. You have more details and kind of more 345 00:21:34,600 --> 00:21:36,000 Speaker 5: insight into it, so I kind of want to talk 346 00:21:36,040 --> 00:21:36,640 Speaker 5: to you about that. 347 00:21:37,080 --> 00:21:41,720 Speaker 6: The Catalan police started an investigation just after his death. 348 00:21:41,880 --> 00:21:42,760 Speaker 2: It's its secret. 349 00:21:42,880 --> 00:21:45,960 Speaker 6: This investigation is secret, so it's very hard to really 350 00:21:46,040 --> 00:21:49,520 Speaker 6: know what's going on and what did the police find out. 351 00:21:49,840 --> 00:21:53,160 Speaker 6: But what they did say at the beginning was that 352 00:21:53,240 --> 00:21:58,560 Speaker 6: it looked like it might be murdered his wife and 353 00:21:58,960 --> 00:22:03,560 Speaker 6: his daughter, and then he committed suicide. So the police 354 00:22:03,560 --> 00:22:06,280 Speaker 6: at first they said, this is what it looks like, 355 00:22:06,800 --> 00:22:11,600 Speaker 6: but other theories are possible and we need to investigate. 356 00:22:11,800 --> 00:22:16,680 Speaker 6: So they started investigating, and they haven't said anything anything more. 357 00:22:17,240 --> 00:22:22,080 Speaker 6: The protosnas the family, they had in their house, they 358 00:22:22,119 --> 00:22:26,720 Speaker 6: had a security system with cameras, they had CCTV, so 359 00:22:27,600 --> 00:22:30,119 Speaker 6: I think that will be very interesting for the investigation. 360 00:22:30,320 --> 00:22:32,000 Speaker 2: Of course, the police can have. 361 00:22:32,040 --> 00:22:35,560 Speaker 6: Access to the images and it will be very easy 362 00:22:35,600 --> 00:22:40,240 Speaker 6: for them to see what happens if they can recover 363 00:22:40,359 --> 00:22:41,439 Speaker 6: the images. 364 00:22:41,840 --> 00:22:43,120 Speaker 2: But not it really is right. 365 00:22:43,160 --> 00:22:43,800 Speaker 1: They haven't said it. 366 00:22:43,840 --> 00:22:45,240 Speaker 2: No, they didn't release it. 367 00:22:45,320 --> 00:22:48,840 Speaker 6: Then they haven't said anything about it. It's it's secret. 368 00:22:48,840 --> 00:22:53,199 Speaker 6: The investigation is secret because they judge wants it like this, 369 00:22:53,359 --> 00:22:56,360 Speaker 6: and so we can't. It's very difficult to know what's 370 00:22:56,400 --> 00:22:56,760 Speaker 6: going on. 371 00:22:57,119 --> 00:22:58,920 Speaker 5: Did they say that they're open to other theories. 372 00:22:59,000 --> 00:23:02,000 Speaker 2: Yes, so what they said is that probably. 373 00:23:01,680 --> 00:23:05,880 Speaker 6: It was a murder and then a suicide, but there 374 00:23:05,880 --> 00:23:09,399 Speaker 6: are other hypotheses. There are other theories and in the 375 00:23:09,440 --> 00:23:11,880 Speaker 6: investigation they are going to look to all of them. 376 00:23:13,200 --> 00:23:18,200 Speaker 2: Have there been any updates since the initial reporting, not really, 377 00:23:18,280 --> 00:23:20,879 Speaker 2: not really, so it's very difficult to know. 378 00:23:21,119 --> 00:23:23,520 Speaker 6: So what we know right now is that this family 379 00:23:23,720 --> 00:23:26,040 Speaker 6: bought this ten years ago. 380 00:23:26,240 --> 00:23:29,000 Speaker 2: More or less. They came here from time to time. 381 00:23:29,040 --> 00:23:33,200 Speaker 6: They had many properties in all of Europe and sometimes 382 00:23:33,480 --> 00:23:37,040 Speaker 6: they like to conhere to the coast of Spain. They 383 00:23:37,040 --> 00:23:41,879 Speaker 6: were very, you know, like very low profile. They didn't 384 00:23:41,960 --> 00:23:47,600 Speaker 6: like the spotlight. So in this village some people knew them. 385 00:23:47,840 --> 00:23:51,960 Speaker 6: This area is very popular with French people, British people, 386 00:23:52,080 --> 00:23:54,720 Speaker 6: some Russian people who like Buried which is the name 387 00:23:54,760 --> 00:23:56,960 Speaker 6: of the village. They really like it and they come 388 00:23:57,040 --> 00:24:02,520 Speaker 6: here on Suner holidays and there is an important Russian community. 389 00:24:02,960 --> 00:24:06,159 Speaker 6: I know some people who live there or some some 390 00:24:06,359 --> 00:24:10,160 Speaker 6: businessmen that really know this area. And what they said 391 00:24:10,240 --> 00:24:14,760 Speaker 6: is that usually the Russian community that lives there or 392 00:24:14,800 --> 00:24:16,440 Speaker 6: that spends the coliday is there. 393 00:24:16,880 --> 00:24:17,760 Speaker 2: There is a part of. 394 00:24:17,760 --> 00:24:20,919 Speaker 6: Them who are very wealthy, and they like to be 395 00:24:21,000 --> 00:24:25,160 Speaker 6: on the spotlight and that people know that they are 396 00:24:25,160 --> 00:24:29,240 Speaker 6: wealthy and that they have a very big house or 397 00:24:29,280 --> 00:24:33,040 Speaker 6: a very luxurious car or water or whatever. And this 398 00:24:33,240 --> 00:24:35,800 Speaker 6: was not the case with this family. They were very 399 00:24:35,840 --> 00:24:40,040 Speaker 6: low profile, even though they were probably the wealthiest Russian 400 00:24:40,040 --> 00:24:41,960 Speaker 6: family in the In the village and. 401 00:24:42,160 --> 00:24:44,320 Speaker 5: Is like the community is it kind of like a 402 00:24:44,400 --> 00:24:46,359 Speaker 5: resort area? Like can you kind of describe what the 403 00:24:46,400 --> 00:24:47,000 Speaker 5: area is like? 404 00:24:47,200 --> 00:24:47,600 Speaker 1: You read? 405 00:24:47,600 --> 00:24:51,000 Speaker 6: This village is located in Costa Brava, which is one 406 00:24:51,320 --> 00:24:54,320 Speaker 6: of the most famous coasts in Spain. 407 00:24:54,400 --> 00:24:57,880 Speaker 2: It's in the north of Spain, very very near France. 408 00:24:58,359 --> 00:25:01,840 Speaker 6: All of this coast is very beautiful, so it's a 409 00:25:01,960 --> 00:25:05,359 Speaker 6: very popular area for holidays with all of these coasts 410 00:25:05,600 --> 00:25:07,600 Speaker 6: which is very beautiful and very big. 411 00:25:07,920 --> 00:25:11,560 Speaker 2: The biggest town is you read. So it's a village, 412 00:25:11,560 --> 00:25:16,040 Speaker 2: but it's a bigger than other villages in the area. 413 00:25:16,240 --> 00:25:19,119 Speaker 6: Has a lot of hotels and a lot of resorts, 414 00:25:19,160 --> 00:25:22,600 Speaker 6: and there are night clubs, there are very big restaurants, 415 00:25:22,720 --> 00:25:27,200 Speaker 6: very big hotels, and yeah, so it's a popular tourist destination. 416 00:25:27,480 --> 00:25:30,359 Speaker 5: I'm not very familiar with Spain how things work. You know, 417 00:25:30,400 --> 00:25:33,480 Speaker 5: there have been cases where Russia, faid Off police and 418 00:25:33,560 --> 00:25:36,600 Speaker 5: like things like that, is this something that's possible in Spain? 419 00:25:36,680 --> 00:25:38,879 Speaker 5: Like could it be that the investigation was influenced in 420 00:25:38,960 --> 00:25:41,240 Speaker 5: some way? First of all, is it possible? And then 421 00:25:41,560 --> 00:25:43,840 Speaker 5: are there any kind of clues that it might have been. 422 00:25:44,040 --> 00:25:45,040 Speaker 2: I don't think so. 423 00:25:45,160 --> 00:25:48,000 Speaker 6: I don't think that the police can be influenced by 424 00:25:48,080 --> 00:25:52,200 Speaker 6: corruption in this Everything is possible, but it's not usual. 425 00:25:52,400 --> 00:25:53,959 Speaker 2: With the regional police. 426 00:25:54,000 --> 00:25:58,600 Speaker 6: They have a very good investigation service and usually they 427 00:25:58,760 --> 00:26:00,399 Speaker 6: solve very difficult mark orders. 428 00:26:00,440 --> 00:26:02,800 Speaker 2: So I think that they are investigating. 429 00:26:03,119 --> 00:26:06,800 Speaker 6: Of course, it's a difficult case because it has probably 430 00:26:07,480 --> 00:26:12,880 Speaker 6: diplomatic consequences, and it's a case that they don't want 431 00:26:12,920 --> 00:26:16,120 Speaker 6: it to be very published, so which it's very secret. 432 00:26:16,800 --> 00:26:20,880 Speaker 6: But I think that they are going to investigate if 433 00:26:20,920 --> 00:26:24,840 Speaker 6: there are images, and they are going to reach the conclusions. 434 00:26:25,040 --> 00:26:28,000 Speaker 6: And so what I think is that I don't know 435 00:26:28,000 --> 00:26:31,600 Speaker 6: what to think. Actually, there are different theories. The suspicious 436 00:26:31,600 --> 00:26:34,960 Speaker 6: thing or the weird thing here is that what is 437 00:26:34,960 --> 00:26:37,880 Speaker 6: going on like in all the world, in Russia, in 438 00:26:37,920 --> 00:26:41,320 Speaker 6: the UK, in Spain. So in a very short period 439 00:26:41,400 --> 00:26:45,959 Speaker 6: of time, there are different deaths of olivegoods and wealthy 440 00:26:46,119 --> 00:26:49,280 Speaker 6: Russian people so would it be that some of these 441 00:26:49,320 --> 00:26:54,679 Speaker 6: deaths are assassinations by the FSB or some mafia. It 442 00:26:54,760 --> 00:26:57,960 Speaker 6: would be, but of course suicides do happen. You have 443 00:26:58,040 --> 00:27:01,520 Speaker 6: also do take into account that the family in the 444 00:27:01,520 --> 00:27:04,439 Speaker 6: case of the Portosnia, they were used to being wealthy, 445 00:27:04,480 --> 00:27:08,000 Speaker 6: to being rich, to having a life style that was 446 00:27:08,160 --> 00:27:14,440 Speaker 6: very luxurious. So once the sanctions, the European and Western 447 00:27:14,480 --> 00:27:19,840 Speaker 6: sanctions to Russian individuals started, that can be a complication 448 00:27:19,960 --> 00:27:22,679 Speaker 6: because they were used to living in They could be 449 00:27:22,720 --> 00:27:25,880 Speaker 6: in Spain, they could be in other European countries without problem, 450 00:27:26,160 --> 00:27:28,360 Speaker 6: and all of us, all of us outen the Bangka 451 00:27:28,359 --> 00:27:32,000 Speaker 6: counts are frozen. So this can also be a problem, 452 00:27:32,000 --> 00:27:35,960 Speaker 6: an economic problem that can have a psychological impact on 453 00:27:36,160 --> 00:27:37,480 Speaker 6: that person for sure. 454 00:27:37,560 --> 00:27:39,160 Speaker 1: Yeah, that could be a mix of of course. 455 00:27:39,640 --> 00:27:42,280 Speaker 5: I think there's two other cases where there was the 456 00:27:42,320 --> 00:27:46,040 Speaker 5: same thing, basically entire family murdered by the husband. So 457 00:27:46,080 --> 00:27:48,600 Speaker 5: it's definitely, you know, weird an kind of especially the 458 00:27:48,640 --> 00:27:49,960 Speaker 5: same kind of social group. 459 00:27:50,600 --> 00:27:53,560 Speaker 2: It looks like like there's a part from Yeah, yeah, definitely. 460 00:27:53,800 --> 00:27:56,159 Speaker 6: So specifically for this case, who's who's the charge of 461 00:27:56,359 --> 00:27:58,119 Speaker 6: the case, the regional police. 462 00:27:59,800 --> 00:28:03,960 Speaker 3: So from the ground, things don't exactly look suspicious. It's 463 00:28:04,000 --> 00:28:06,720 Speaker 3: worth noting here in light of the talk about Sergey 464 00:28:06,760 --> 00:28:11,560 Speaker 3: Protozenya's many properties, that he owned a property management company 465 00:28:11,920 --> 00:28:16,680 Speaker 3: known as Sherwood Premiere. Novtech has since taken it over, 466 00:28:17,080 --> 00:28:22,080 Speaker 3: But again, overall, no huge red flags. According to Victor Racatcha, 467 00:28:22,400 --> 00:28:25,760 Speaker 3: Protozena had a nice, big villa in a nice area, 468 00:28:26,200 --> 00:28:29,959 Speaker 3: wasn't that flashy, and kept himself to himself despite probably 469 00:28:29,960 --> 00:28:33,320 Speaker 3: being the richest person in the whole village. That said, 470 00:28:33,480 --> 00:28:37,040 Speaker 3: a more discreet lifestyle doesn't tee up with the usual 471 00:28:37,119 --> 00:28:41,000 Speaker 3: kinds of rich folk who carry out family annihilations. As 472 00:28:41,040 --> 00:28:44,720 Speaker 3: Professor Yardley said in episode one, they're usually the type 473 00:28:44,720 --> 00:28:48,400 Speaker 3: to flaunt their wealth and power. She did also stress though, 474 00:28:48,480 --> 00:28:52,000 Speaker 3: that there's no completely solid template to the kinds of 475 00:28:52,000 --> 00:28:55,800 Speaker 3: people that do these killings. Protozena could well have done this, 476 00:28:56,360 --> 00:28:59,560 Speaker 3: and unlike the first family annihilation case we looked at 477 00:28:59,640 --> 00:29:04,280 Speaker 3: the Heelnikov killings, there's not as much information directly related 478 00:29:04,280 --> 00:29:08,760 Speaker 3: to the case that looks highly suspicious. However, we still 479 00:29:08,880 --> 00:29:12,800 Speaker 3: couldn't get over the timing of this. The Mormi and 480 00:29:12,880 --> 00:29:17,360 Speaker 3: Sergey looked into that aspect of things, it got even stranger. 481 00:29:18,480 --> 00:29:21,400 Speaker 3: So it turns out that just one day before Sergei 482 00:29:21,520 --> 00:29:26,560 Speaker 3: Protozenya apparently killed his whole family and himself, yet another 483 00:29:26,640 --> 00:29:33,400 Speaker 3: Russian oligarch did the exact same thing. Vladislav Aviyev was 484 00:29:33,440 --> 00:29:38,200 Speaker 3: found dead alongside his murdered family on April eighteenth in 485 00:29:38,240 --> 00:29:42,840 Speaker 3: their upscale Moscow apartment. The Russian authorities said that they 486 00:29:42,880 --> 00:29:46,760 Speaker 3: were investigating, but they believe Aviev killed his wife and 487 00:29:47,120 --> 00:29:53,240 Speaker 3: daughter before offering himself. Aviev was the former vice president 488 00:29:53,360 --> 00:29:58,880 Speaker 3: of Gazprom Bank, the financial wing of Russian gas giant Gazprom, 489 00:29:59,160 --> 00:30:03,480 Speaker 3: which we spoke about at length in episode two. Averyev 490 00:30:03,680 --> 00:30:08,040 Speaker 3: also apparently used to work for the Kremlin. So within 491 00:30:08,080 --> 00:30:12,640 Speaker 3: the space of forty eight hours, two mega rich Russian businessmen, 492 00:30:13,000 --> 00:30:16,680 Speaker 3: both of them involved in both banking and the gas industry, 493 00:30:17,280 --> 00:30:21,800 Speaker 3: killed their families and then themselves. All this within less 494 00:30:21,800 --> 00:30:26,160 Speaker 3: than four weeks of Vasily Melnikov murdering his family apart 495 00:30:26,160 --> 00:30:31,360 Speaker 3: from one child who wasn't there, same with proto Zenya. Now, 496 00:30:31,480 --> 00:30:34,800 Speaker 3: neither me nor Surgery are dramatic people with not the 497 00:30:34,800 --> 00:30:37,880 Speaker 3: types to jump to conclusions, but the timing of this, 498 00:30:38,160 --> 00:30:43,480 Speaker 3: considering how rare family annihilation cases are feels a little 499 00:30:43,480 --> 00:30:47,680 Speaker 3: bit fishy to us, especially considering they're all within the 500 00:30:47,720 --> 00:30:52,000 Speaker 3: same demographic of people. It's very very rare that this 501 00:30:52,040 --> 00:30:57,160 Speaker 3: would happen. So to sum up that three Russian oligarchs 502 00:30:57,160 --> 00:31:00,280 Speaker 3: who killed their families and then themselves, all within the 503 00:31:00,320 --> 00:31:04,200 Speaker 3: space of four weeks, one on March twenty third, one 504 00:31:04,240 --> 00:31:08,360 Speaker 3: on April eighteenth, and one on April nineteenth. Two of 505 00:31:08,400 --> 00:31:12,200 Speaker 3: these oligarchs worked in both the gas and banking industries 506 00:31:12,600 --> 00:31:16,400 Speaker 3: for the first and second largest gas suppliers in Russia. 507 00:31:17,720 --> 00:31:21,120 Speaker 3: If it's all just a coincidence, it's a very big one. 508 00:31:35,000 --> 00:31:38,280 Speaker 3: Sad Oligarch is a h eleven production for Cool Zone 509 00:31:38,280 --> 00:31:44,640 Speaker 3: Media and iHeartRadio, hosted, produced, researched and edited by me 510 00:31:45,160 --> 00:31:50,680 Speaker 3: Jake Hanrahan and Sergey Slipchenkok co produced by Sophie Lichtman. 511 00:31:51,120 --> 00:31:56,320 Speaker 3: Music by Sam Black, artwork by Adam mcdoyle, sound mix. 512 00:31:56,280 --> 00:31:57,520 Speaker 1: By Splicing Block. 513 00:31:57,920 --> 00:32:01,160 Speaker 3: Go to Jakeanrahan dot com for more information.