Vasily Bochkaryov

Vasily Kuzmich Bochkaryov (; 29 April 1949 – 22 June 2016) was a Russian politician. He served as Head of Zheleznodorozhny District of Penza from 1987 to 1998, and was elected Head of the Administration of Penza Oblast in April 1998. He became Governor of Penza Oblast in June 1998, and since then has been re-elected two times – in 2002 and 2005. He won his 2002 election by a small margin over his Communist challenger. Since 2015 until his death, Bochkaryov represented Penza Oblast in the Federation Council of Russia.

Early life and education Vasily Bochkaryov was born on 29 April 1949 to a peasant family in the village of Iva, in Nizhnelomovsky District of Penza Oblast, Russian SSR.

In 1968 Bochkaryov completed Alatyrsk Forest Industry Technical School, then he enrolled at Maxim Gorky Mari Polytechnic Institute and graduated as a forestry engineer in 1973. He later continued his studies and graduated from Penza State Technical University with a degree in State and Municipal Management in 1994, and from the Penza State Agricultural Academy with a degree in Economics and Agricultural Production Management in 1999.

In 2002 he defended his Candidate of Sociological Sciences dissertation at Modern Humanitarian Institute, titled "The Level and Quality of Life as the Object of Control (Regional Aspect)". On 29 September 2013 the community Dissernet published the results of their examination of his thesis, which revealed extensive plagiarism from two other theses. He died on 22 June 2016 at the age of 67.

Accusations of academic dishonesty The grassroots expert community Dissernet accused Vasily Bochkarev of heavily plagiarising his Candidate of Sciences thesis.

Family He was married and had a daughter.

His wife, Valentina Mikhailovna Bochkaryova, served as a member of the board of directors of OAO Biosintez (owned by Boris Shpigel, senator from Penza Oblast). Alexander Pashkov, the vice-governor of Penza Oblast arrested in 2008, stated that Valentina Bochkaryova owned 25% of the shares of OAO Biosintez. The Bochkaryov family did not issue any denial of this information. Valentina Bochkaryova also holds a share in OOO Viktoriya (providing secretarial, editorial, and translation services). In 2009, she appeared as a co-defendant in a lawsuit concerning an unlawfully allocated land plot in Penza at 82 Moskovskaya Street.

His daughter, Natalia Vasilievna Bochkaryova (17 May 1979 – 11 July 2023), owned shares in OOO Imperiya (real estate leasing) and in OOO Saturn, which in turn owns 76% of OOO Penza Bearing Plant. Until 2010, she was among the shareholders of OAO Evlashovsky Timber Processing Plant. According to media reports, the song “Natali,” performed by Nikolai Baskov (former son-in-law of Boris Shpigel), is dedicated to Natalia Bochkaryova. She was found dead in her Moscow apartment on 11 July 2023. The cause of death was acute heart failure.