Russian-installed official in Ukraine's Kherson region dies in car crash

Kirill Stremousov, the Russian-installed deputy head of Ukraine's Kherson region has diedin a car crash, officials said on Wednesday."Kirill Sergeyevich Stremousov has died," the head of Russia-annexed Crimea, Sergei Aksyonov, said on the messaging app Telegram. He said Stremousov was a "true fighter" and a "Russian patriot."

Stremousov was one of the most well-known public representatives of Russia's occupation of Ukraine. Hefrequently madeinflammatory statements on social media, with the most recent one appearing on Wednesday morning.

The specifics of the accidentwere not known. The regional governor's press office reportedly verified his death, according to the TASS news agency.

Russia attempted to seize Kherson, one of Ukraine's southernmost regions, as well as three other regions last month bystaging what it called referendums that were dismissed by Kyiv and the West as illegal shams.

In light of the escalating Ukrainian counteroffensive to retake land taken by Russian forces in the early stages of the conflict, Stremousovhad recently been advising residents to leave the western bank of the Dnipro river.

(with inputs from agencies)