Vyacheslav Taran’s family dismisses claims of connections to Russian intelligence
The family of online investment tycoon Vyacheslav Taran, who was killed in a helicopter crash near Monaco last week, has categorically denied any links to the Russian intelligence, calling such allegations outrageous and absolute lies.
In a statement, the heartbroken family said those rumors in the media only aim at misleading the investigation and covering Taran’s support of Ukrainian people through his charity foundations. Specifically, they highlighted how Taran was devoted to giving back to the community and always rushed to help those in need, particularly children. He co-founded Change One Life, a charitable foundation helping children from orphanages and child-care institutions to find families and live fulfilling lives.
This is the second official statement from Taran’s family and comes barely a day after his widow denied claims made in Ukrainian media that her husband had ties to Russian government. Olga, the founder of Hello Monaco media, said yesterday she was ‘devastated’ after her husband Vyacheslav Taran, 53, died and left behind three children.
You can read the full text below:
Statement from Taran family
Following the tragic death of Vyacheslav Taran, a devoted husband and loving father of three, we have been greatly distressed by the publication of false and inaccurate information that has tarnished his name and we would like to set the record straight.
Vyacheslav Taran was a successful businessman and serial entrepreneur, who was also an investor in various fintech startups, including some that worked with cryptocurrencies. He was definitely not a “crypto billionaire” and one might argue that he invested more in blockchain and crypto technology than he ever got out of it.
We categorically deny that he was involved in any way with the Russian Intelligence services or the Russian government in any capacity and we also categorically deny that he was involved in money laundering for Russian “elites” or in any other illegal activity. These are completely unfounded fabrications and outright lies, which have compounded our grief at this very difficult time.
Vyacheslav Taran was born in Russia but had lived and worked overseas since 2008, before settling in Monaco with his family more than a decade ago.
The circumstances surrounding the accident are still being investigated, mainly because of the nature of the accident. It is obviously a lengthy process, as is any investigation into accidents involving any type of aircraft. There is nothing “mysterious” about it and everyone should wait until the investigation is fully completed before jumping to conclusions or speculating about crazy conspiracy theories. We fully support the authorities in their investigation and eagerly await their findings being made public in due course.
Our beloved Vyacheslav was also a great philanthropist, having contributed to numerous charity organisations and was the co-founder of the Change One Life Foundation, which to this day has helped more than 30,000 orphaned children find families and live fulfilling lives.
Above all, he was a loyal and supportive friend, husband and father and we would politely request that his memory is not dishonoured by false information or baseless speculation.
