Ukraine Govt Sees No Links Between 6 Former Regime Suicides

Ukraine's interior minister says he sees no links between a series of recent alleged suicides of officials who served during the regime of deposed President Viktor Yanukovych.

Interior Minister Arsen Avakov said Friday that any suggestion that the deaths were connected was "speculation."

In the most prominent case, a leading official with Yanukovych's now-defunct former ruling Party of Region, Mikhail Chechetov, in late February fell to his death from his 17-story apartment in Kiev. Police said they found a suicide note. Chechetov was facing criminal investigation for abuse of office.

Five other former Ukrainian government officials in the past two months have died in various circumstances that police have said were most likely suicides.

Yanukovych was ousted in February 2014 after months of sometimes violent anti-government street protests.