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Russian Truck Driver Who Killed Elderly Cyclist Commits Suicide

Some commentators on social networks had alleged that the trucker had run down the pensioner deliberately. Julio Greff / Flickr

A truck driver who hit and killed an elderly cyclist committed suicide Saturday, Russian media reported.

The driver, 42, killed himself three days after hitting 72-year-old Alexander Grechkin with his truck in the Tver region.

Grechkin, who was in the middle of a 7,000-kilometer bike ride across Russia to commemorate the 70th anniversary of the end of World War II, was killed immediately.

The driver told police that he had taken his eyes off the road and lost control over the truck while adjusting the radio, TverNews reported.

Three days later, he hanged himself in his truck. His body was found Sunday in a parking lot for trucks in Tver, government newspaper Rossiiskaya Gazeta reported.

A suicide note found on him asked that no one be blamed for his death. Regional investigators are looking for any evidence that he was driven to kill himself by a third party, Rossiiskaya Gazeta reported.

Following the accident last week, some commentators on social networks had alleged that the trucker had run down the pensioner deliberately.

He left behind a wife and twin children, Rossiiskaya Gazeta reported.

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