Russian Helps Free Hostage, Dies

A top Russian security agent died of a heart attack after offering himself as a hostage in place of a Swedish diplomat, Russia’s security chief said Saturday.

The agent, Col. Anatoly Savelyev, 51, was also struck in the leg by a ricocheting bullet during gunfire that killed the hostage-taker and ended a standoff at the Swedish Embassy.

But the wound was not life-threatening, and doctors said Savelyev’s death was caused by a heart attack, said Nikolai D. Kovalev, director of the Federal Security Service, the main successor to the Soviet-era KGB.

Kovalev said snipers opened fire after the attacker, armed with a grenade and a pistol, began changing his demands and it became clear that force was “the only possible” way to end the standoff.

The hostage-taker seized Swedish trade counselor Jan-Olof Nystrom as the diplomat entered the Swedish Embassy on Friday night. He demanded $370,000 and a flight out of Russia.

Savelyev, one of Russia’s most experienced hostage negotiators, replaced Nystrom in the besieged Volvo sedan after more than four hours of tense talks.

A veteran of Russia’s elite Alpha commando force, Savelyev served in most of the country’s hot spots during the past 20 years. He successfully negotiated resolutions to a number of similar situations, including the hijacking of a passenger plane from Magadan earlier this month.