The 66 – year old founder and editor of the Selsovet (Village Council) newspaper, was gunned down in the Stavropol region.
Local media reports said the newspaper exposed alleged corruption by local authorities, particularly with respect to land deals in which officials were accused of transferring state property to criminal gangs in neighbouring Caucasus regions.
Sources also said that the newspaper’s uncompromising stance was the most likely motive for Potapov’s killing. Authorities took suspects into custody shortly after the crime and in mid-August they said they had identified the mastermind behind the killing, but they did not release that person’s name.
Source:IPI