Dmitrii Vladimirovich Krioukov came to ASU with a mission: to learn the skills that would make him a better English teacher when he returned to his home in Volgograd, Russia.
He died before he had the chance.
Krioukov, a 27-year-old scholar of English linguistics at Volgograd University, was a visiting academic at ASU. He was found dead in his apartment on Oct. 16, Tempe police officer Jeff Lane said.
Though the Maricopa County Medical Examiners Office has not released official autopsy findings yet, Lane said Krioukov's death appeared accidental.
"Officers responded to the victim's apartment after a neighbor reported that his window had been broken 17 to 19 hours earlier and had not been cleaned up," Lane said. "Officers checked the window and observed blood on the broken glass. When they looked inside, they saw a large amount of blood inside the apartment."
Officers found Krioukov's body in the bathroom and located a laceration on his right inner arm, Lane said.
Lane added that the initial investigation indicated Krioukov had struck the window with his right hand, breaking the glass and causing the laceration. He ultimately bled to death, the investigation showed.
Krioukov was visiting ASU on a grant from the American Council of Teachers of Russian and the American Council on International Intercultural Education. The councils select a successful student from Russia or one of the 15 former Soviet satellite nations to apprentice faculty at an American university.
"Dmitrii was drawn to ASU because of the strength of our Slavic languages department," said Lee Croft, a professor in the department. "He was a brilliant scholar and a very promising future academic leader."
Susan Edgington, an administrative assistant in the Russian and East European Studies Center, assisted Krioukov in finding an apartment, selecting his classes and familiarizing himself with the English and Slavic language departments.
"Everyone who worked with Dmitrii was shocked to learn of his death," Edgington said. "We lost a very bright, very charming scholar."
He became close to faculty and staff, sometimes visiting them in their homes, and was often a guest in Russian classes, Croft said.
Krioukov addressed the Arizona Association of Slavic Teachers during a convention on campus in September, reading a paper on the aspects of linguistic personality.
Krioukov was studying and developing personality through language and working closely with Danko Sipka, associate director of the Critical Language Institute.
"Dmitrii was an energetic and athletic young man poised to advance his career and expand his personal horizons," Sipka said.
The Department of Slavic Language and Literature will name its annual student Russian translation contest after Krioukov, Sipka added.
"Dmitrii's contributions to the language department and his visits to individual classes were always positive," Croft said. "He had amazing potential and will be missed."
Reach the reporter at kelly.vaughn@asu.edu.
