Former top executive at Russia’s Gazprombank flees Kremlin’s reach and joins Ukraine’s defence
A former senior executive at a major Russian bank has fled the country and joined Ukraine’s army.
Former vice-president at Gazprombank, Igor Volobuyev, said he “couldn’t stay with those people, shake their hands, watch the war on my phone as if this were a horrible film and pretend I didn’t care.
Speaking to Ukrainian media outlet Liga.net in Kyiv as he joined the territorial defence forces against Russia, he said: “My father spent a month in a cold basement. People I know from my childhood were telling me they were ashamed of me.”
The former top official, who spent more than 15-years at the bank, which is a key player in the sale of Russian fuel, also responded to the death of another executive.
Vladislav Avaev reportedly killed his wife and child before committing suicide, but Volobuyev said: “I don’t believe he could kill his wife and daughter. I think it was staged,”
“Why? It’s hard to say. Maybe he knew something and he was dangerous.”