An extremely wealthy Russian has died in a helicopter crash in Monaco after it plunged to the ground under mysterious circumstances on Friday (November 25) afternoon, killing two.
Billionaire Viacheslav Taran, 53, is understood to have been the lone passenger of the Monacair helicopter that went down close to the village of Eze, having lifted off from Lausanne, Switzerland.
The mega-rich mogul was the co-founder and controlling shareholder of Retail FX and brokerage brands Libertex and Forex Club.
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Originally from Vladivostok, he is also alleged to have had connections to Russian foreign intelligence.
The pilot of the chopper, 35, is also understood to have perished after the second passenger scheduled to take the flight pulled out last minute, Monaco Daily News reported.
The Eurocopter EC 130 helicopter lifted off from nearby Switzerland in the maritime Alpes shortly after midday, as Taran went to do business at the trading platform YouHodler SA.
The deputy public prosecutor of Nice, southeast France, said third-party involvement remained a possibility after they visited the site.
The smash is thought to have taken place in the city of Villefranche-sur-Mer.
UNIAN, a Ukrainian news agency, described the mega-rich man as a "billionaire crypto businessman with likely ties to the Russian Foreign Intelligence Service".
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Here it was claimed he had been “laundering Russian funds through a system of cryptocurrency operations” and had connections to SVR foreign espionage agency.
The weather at the time of the smash is understood to have been good.
In pro-Russian, pro-war media circles the crash has been labelled a “clean up operation”.
Taran’s wife runs Hello Monaco media, which said in a statement: "It is with great sadness that Libertex Group confirms the death of its co-founder and Chairman of Board of Directors, Vyacheslav Taran, after a helicopter crash that took place en route to Monaco on Friday, 25 November 2022.
"The Board of Directors of Libertex Group and company employees extend their most heartfelt condolences and sympathy to the Taran family."
Meanwhile, the Government of Monaco said it “shares the pain caused by this tragedy," while the French Government has launched an investigation.
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