Boris Berezovsky
Russian business oligarch, government official, engineer and mathematician (1946-2013) / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Boris Abramovich Berezovsky (23 January 1946 – 23 March 2013) was a Russian-British business man, billionaire, and former mathematician. He was best known for the powerful positions he held in the 1990s when Boris Yeltsin was president of Russia.
Boris Berezovsky | |
---|---|
Born | (1946-01-23)23 January 1946 |
Died | 23 March 2013(2013-03-23) (aged 67) |
Cause of death | Suicide by hanging |
Nationality | Russian |
Citizenship | British |
Occupation(s) | Business oligarch, mathematician, government official |
Spouse(s) | Nina, divorced Galina Besharova (1991–2010), divorced[1] |
Partner | Yelena Gorbunova (m. 1996–2012, separated) |
Website | www.borisberezovsky.net |
Berezovsky was deputy secretary of Russia's security council, and a friend of Boris Yeltsin's daughter Tatyana. He had a lot of power over what the newspapers were allowed to print and what the television stations could say. They were not allowed to say anything bad about Yeltsin.
Berezovsky made his fortune importing Mercedes cars into Russia in the 1990s. He made a lot of money from Avtovaz cars and he owned the Sibneft oil company.
When Putin came to power Berezovsky fled to London where he was given political asylum. He said that he was trying to put an end to Putin's power. The Russian authorities accused him of trying to murder several leading critics of Putin's regime, including Alexander Litvinenko and journalist Anna Politkovskaya, in order to make Putin look bad. The Swiss accused him of taking money illegally.
In 1994 someone tried to kill Berezovsky. Several other people may have tried to kill him. He said these people were Russian agents.
Berezovsky died on 23 March 2013 in Sunninghill, Berkshire, England, aged 67.[2] He lived in London, England. On March 25, police said that his death was caused by hanging. There were no signs of a struggle.