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London-based Russian anti-war chef found dead in Serbia, AFP reports

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London-based Russian anti-war chef found dead in Serbia, AFP reports
Actor Jude Law at The Box poses with head chef Alexei Zimin (L) during The Life RX Live, a digital first, improvised on-the-road live-streamed performance to celebrate the launch of the new Lexus RX in Soho on October 24, 2016 in London, England. (Gareth Cattermole/Getty Images for Lexus RX)

A renowned Russian chef known for his strong criticism of Russia's war against Ukraine was found dead during a visit to Serbia's capital. The death of Alexei Zimin, who has lived in London for years, is the latest in a series of deaths involving Russian expatriates critical of the war.

A source close to the investigation told AFP that Zimin's body was discovered late on Nov. 12 in a rented apartment in Belgrade, where he was staying while promoting his latest book, "Anglomania."

Zimin co-founded the ZIMA restaurant in London, contributed as a senior writer for various magazines, and co-authored multiple books. Serbian authorities informed the BBC that there were "no suspicious circumstances" surrounding his death, and that both an autopsy and toxicology report were in progress.

Born in Russia in 1971, Zimin established several restaurants in Moscow before departing after Russia's 2014 annexation of Crimea.

Zimin's restaurant in London, Zima, confirmed the chef's death on Instagram. "For us, Alexei was not only a colleague, he was our friend, a close person with whom we were lucky to go through a lot - both good, kind and sad," the restaurant said.

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Olena Goncharova

Head of North America desk

Olena Goncharova is the Head of North America desk at The Kyiv Independent, where she has previously worked as a development manager and Canadian correspondent. She first joined the Kyiv Post, Ukraine's oldest English-language newspaper, as a staff writer in January 2012 and became the newspaper’s Canadian correspondent in June 2018. She is based in Edmonton, Alberta. Olena has a master’s degree in publishing and editing from the Institute of Journalism in Taras Shevchenko National University in Kyiv. Olena was a 2016 Alfred Friendly Press Partners fellow who worked for the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette for six months. The program is administered by the University of Missouri School of Journalism in Columbia.

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