The 73-year-old co-founder of the weekly newspaper Novy Petersburg, who was attacked in St. Petersburg on 9 March by unidentified assailants and had remained unconscious at the hospital since then, died of his wounds. According to Radio Free Europe,quoting Andrushchenko's colleagues and lawyer , the veteran journalist underwent surgery after the attack and initially had been connected to a ventilator but was later able to breathe on his own.

However, they said he never regained consciousness and died on April 19. His attackers have not been found. Novy Petersburg's editor Denis Usov linked the attack against Andrushchenko to articles that the newspaper had written about corruption in the city, which exposed connections between the administration's officials and organised criminal syndicates.

Source: Radio Free Europe – Radio Liberty