Russian general and first head of Russia's chemical defence troops found dead in Moscow

Retired Colonel General Stanislav Petrov, former commander of the Radiation, Chemical and Biological Defence Troops of the Russian Armed Forces, has been found dead in Moscow.

Source: The Moscow Times, citing Russian propaganda media outlets RIA Novosti and Izvestia

Details: According to Russian media reports, Petrov's body was found by relatives at around 07:00 on 2 April in his flat in a "house on the embankment". Preliminary reports suggest the retired general has committed suicide.

Unnamed law enforcement sources said a gun was found next to the deceased.

Petrov was the last commander of the Soviet Union's chemical defence troops and the first head of Russia's Radiation, Chemical and Biological Defence Troops, which he led until 2001. After retiring, he worked as a researcher at a military institute and served as editor-in-chief of the journal Vestnik Voisk RKhB Zashchity (Radiation, Chemical and Biological Defence Troops News).

According to his official biography, Petrov was the chief researcher at the 27th Scientific Centre, which is under sanctions imposed by the US, the EU, the UK and Ukraine over its involvement in the development and use of chemical weapons as part of the Russian forces.

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