Russian general buried in Moscow identified as Valery Plokhotnyuk. He likely died in explosion at Aerospace Forces chief’s birthday party.

A Russian major general buried this week in Moscow has been identified as Valery Plokhotnyuk, and evidence increasingly points to an explosion at a birthday party for Aerospace Forces commander-in-chief Alexander Chayko as the cause of death. Meduza reports that state registries show one of Plokhotnyuk's documents was invalidated on August first, the same day a blast occurred at Moscow's Balzi Rossi restaurant, where Chayko's birthday gathering was reportedly underway. Leaked contact data suggests Plokhotnyuk was related to Chayko, and a second man, Chayko's son-in-law Daniil Peredriy, was buried a day later, also confirmed to have died on August first. As independent Russian outlets piece together the story through leaked records and cemetery burials rather than official statements, key questions about what actually happened at that party remain unanswered.

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