A millionaire businessman who left his girlfriend with half her skull missing after a horrific attack has died from ‘shock’ after learning he can be jailed or fight in Ukraine.
Anzhelika Tartanova, 33, suffered catastrophic head injuries, severe brain damage and lasting cognitive problems after Dmitry Kuzmin, 41, attacked her.
Kuzmin has now died suddenly from a suspected heart attack, after learning of his expected punishment.
The model went on TV 4 months ago to disclose the horrors of her injuries.
Initially, businessman Kuzmin hoped to avoid a jail sentence and was even allowed to go to Tartanova in hospital, despite having caused her horrific injuries. But then he was charged with attempted murder.
‘Preliminary reports indicate that Kuzmin’s heart failed attributable to the psychological trauma of the criminal case brought against him following the horrific beating of Anzhelika,’ Russian media said.
Enroll for all of the newest stories
Start your day informed with Metro’s News Updates newsletter or get Breaking News alerts the moment it happens.
The model was unable to talk for months after the attack by the road construction mogul.
She revealed her recovery has been slow from the attack on 23 November last 12 months, and her speech has not fully recovered.
‘For a very long time I didn’t go near the mirror, I used to be very scared,’ she said.
Her sister Anastasia Beloglazova said: ‘What form of animal do you may have to be to treat an individual like that…? It’s horrifying.’
Kuzmin’s attack shattered her bones, effectively ‘removing half of her skull’, Starhit news said, adding: ‘Now she’s coping with serious consequences: speech, memory, and coordination are impaired, and he or she faces an extended recovery and further surgeries.’
Doctors say the assault caused devastating brain trauma, requiring emergency surgery to avoid wasting her life.
Neurosurgeon Vyacheslav Smirnov said her case was ‘complex and severe’.
‘She not only had a subdural haematoma, but in addition damage and destruction of the brain tissue itself. And a severe traumatic brain injury,’ he said.
Without immediate surgery, she would likely have slipped right into a coma inside hours, he said.
The procedure required surgeons to remove a big section of Tartanova’s skull to alleviate pressure on her brain — a process often known as a decompressive craniotomy.
Smirnov said her skull would later be reconstructed using modern technology, explaining: ‘A 3D printer will create a model of her skull… we’ll completely cover this defect, and cosmetically nothing can be visible.’
Kuzmin had been told he was expected to face not less than eight years in prison.
His only way of avoiding prison would have been to enlist in Vladimir Putin’s army and fight on the frontline in Ukraine.
Get in contact with our news team by emailing us at webnews@metro.co.uk.
For more stories like this, check our news page.
MORE: Twelve young people injured in ‘Sunday Funday’ shooting by lake
MORE: £50,000,000,000 hearing loss legal bill ‘to place huge strain on Ministry of Defence’
MORE: Russian minister ‘dodges Putin’s security service and flees to US’ after sacking