AMSTERDAM — Dutch authorities say a Russian man who had sought political asylum in the Netherlands has committed suicide while awaiting deportation to his homeland.
The man, identified in Russian media as Alexander Dolmatov, killed himself in a Rotterdam detention center, Justice Ministry spokeswoman Charlotte Menten confirmed Thursday, Jan.17.
Dolmatov sought asylum in the Netherlands in June. His request was rejected after a “careful procedure” by Dutch immigration authorities, Menten said.
She said he left a note citing personal reasons for his suicide, not his asylum status or imminent return to Russia.
Dolmatov was among those arrested in May clashes with police after Russian President Vladimir Putin’s inauguration. One fellow protestor has been sentenced to 4 1/2 years in prison. The trial of 18 others is to begin in March.
