The ex governor who may have ordered a hit on journalist Oleg Kashin just got a sweet new job

Russian senators have voted to make Andrey Turchak, the former governor of Pskov, their new vice speaker. Nominated by Federation Council Chairwoman Valentina Matviyenko, Turkchak is now one of the Senate’s six vice speakers.

Journalist Oleg Kashin accuses Andrey Turchak of ordering an attack on him in November 2010, when Kashin was severely beaten near his home and almost killed. Turchak denies any involvement in the attack, and police have never pressed charges against him.

During Turchak’s appointment to the Federation Council’s deputy speaker position, Senator Lyudmila Narusova asked Turchak to explain why he was never questioned in the Kashin investigation. Turchak told her, “I’ve commented repeatedly on this matter. Your information is erroneous.”

Turchak joined the Federation Council earlier this fall after resigning his post as Pskov governor, which he’d held since 2009. He was quickly given a high-ranking spot in the Senate as acting secretary of the General Council of the ruling political party United Russia. Turchak reportedly owes his political career in part to family connections: according to journalists, his father is one of Vladimir Putin’s former judo sparring partners.