Former Official Commits Suicide in Courtroom After Verdict in Russia

The Russian news agency RIA Novosti reports that Viktor Sviridov, the former head of the Federal Penitentiary Service’s automotive department, committed suicide during a court session in Moscow.

According to the court’s press secretary, Ulyana Solopova, the defendant took his own life immediately after the verdict was announced. He was sentenced to three years in prison.

Sources indicate that he managed to bring a firearm into the courtroom.

Sviridov was accused of extorting 10 million rubles from another official. Reports also suggest that he was suffering from stage 4 cancer.

The circumstances surrounding the incident are under investigation.