Former minister from Russia’s Komi Republic says he fled Russia and requested political asylum in U.S.

Denis Sharonov, the former agriculture and consumer market manager of Russia’s Komi Republic, fled to the U.S. and requested political asylum after he “started getting signals” that it would be dangerous for him to remain in Russia, the TV network RTVI reported on Tuesday, citing the minister himself.

Journalists from RTVI learned about Sharonov’s story from a clip on the YouTube channel New Americans in which he mentions that he used to be a Russian minister but does not reveal his name. The journalists used facial recognition technology to determine his identity and contacted him.

Sharonov became the Komi Republic’s agriculture and consumer market manager in December 2020 and was dismissed in 2022 after reportedly butting heads with Governor Vladimir Uyba. He told RTVI that he left for the U.S. after receiving a draft order during Russia’s mobilization campaign. He currently works as a truck driver and hopes to find employment in the agricultural sector in the future.