The Courier & Advertiser (Fife Edition)
TV series probes ‘links to Russia’ over death of Dundee businessman
Anew series of documentaries will probe suspected Russian links to the death of a Dundee business tycoon in London.
Scot Young, 52 – who was brought up in Stobswell before making millions as a property developer – was found dead in December 2014.
He had fallen four storeys from his London penthouse on to the railings below.
A 2015 inquest found his death could not be ruled as suicide due to insufficient evidence, although police insisted there were no suspicious circumstances.
But a subsequent investigation by Buzzfeed News claimed there was evidence linking the death of Mr Young – and 13 others – to Russia.
Those deaths will now be the subject of the docu-series – One Upon a Time in Londongrad – to be broadcast by Sky.
The series sees investigative reporter Heidi Blake act on a tip about Mr Young’s death which prompts her to re-examine the circumstances leading to the incident.
This opens up a trail to 13 other deaths in mysterious circumstances, including in a helicopter crash, a poisoning and a man found dead in a sports bag.
Investigators claim the common theme linking the deaths is Russia.
A description of the docu-series states: “Set across Vladimir Putin’s two decades in power, Once Upon a Time in Londongrad charts how the UK became reliant on Russian money and missed opportunities to contain the Kremlin.
“The timely series explores 14 mysterious deaths in the UK with alleged connections to Russia, delving into the hidden underworld of Russian exiles in London to link some of the most internationally significant cases in living memory – including the poisoning of Alexander Litvinenko, the suspicious death of oligarch Boris Berezovsky and the attempted assassination of former Russian spy Sergei Skripal.
“Once Upon a Time in Londongrad is both a cautionary tale and an origins story of Russia’s path to eventually invading Ukraine.”
The series will air on Sky Documentaries and Now from May 31.
Mr Young was the son of former Dundee United player Duncan Young.
He grew up on Clepington Street in Dundee but moved to London where he met wife Michelle.
He reportedly started building contacts in the property business with the help of his father-in-law – buying houses to renovate and sell on for a profit.
He built up a £2 billion fortune but lost all his money in a deal for a retail development in Moscow.
Many of the details emerged as the couple played out bitter divorce proceedings in 2011.
The father of two was sent to prison in 2013 for refusing to reveal his finances during the court battle.
An inquest into his December 2014 death heard how Mr Young had told partner Noelle Reno on the phone that he was going to jump out the window, moments before he was found.
According to the Buzzfeed investigation, Mr Young “had been telling friends, family, and the police for years that he was being targeted by a team of Russian hitmen – ever since his fortune vanished overnight in a mysterious Moscow property deal”.