Russian scientist Nikita Zezin, 67, beaten after confronting children on ATVs, has died. Investigators have opened a criminal case against the father who attacked him for scolding his son.

A 67-year-old Russian scientist has died after being beaten near Yekaterinburg for confronting children who were riding all-terrain vehicles through experimental crop fields. According to Meduza, Nikita Zezin and a colleague had called the children's parents to arrange their pickup, but when adults arrived at the research center, one of them attacked Zezin while the children reportedly watched. Zezin, director of the Ural Federal Agricultural Research Center and a corresponding member of the Russian Academy of Sciences, died after what officials describe as a heart attack, though people close to him believe the beating triggered it. Investigators have opened a criminal case against the father, Meduza reports, though the specific charge hasn't been disclosed.

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