Andrey Botikov, the 47-year-old Russian scientist who was responsible for the development of the COVID-19 vaccine, which had been tested on soldiers in Syria and other Middle Eastern nations, was found strangled to death in the front yard of his apartment building in St. Petersburg.

The Russian Investigative Committee is currently investigating his death as a murder. President Putin had awarded Botikov with the “Order of Merit for the Fatherland” for his contribution in developing the Sputnik V antiviral vaccine.

His work included a diatom-based vaccine for dengue fever, West Nile virus, Ebola, and other diseases. The official cause of his death has not yet been officially determined, although it appears he was strangled. Alexander Kulakov, director of local criminal investigations department announced that: “The case is being investigated as a murder that occurred abroad.”

@phalguni

Newz Quest