Russia authorities from the Leningrad Oblast have began an investigation into the death of Dmitri Ganin during the 2007 Bronze Night riots in Tallinn.

A spokesman for the commission tasked with investigating the murder told a Russian media outlet that they have launched an investigation as Estonian authorities have failed to find a culprit.

The committee said that according to Russian laws, Russia can investigate any crime committed against its citizens.

Kaarel Kallas, a spokesman for the Estonian Prosecutor's Office, said Russian officials have not contacted them, adding that an Estonian investigation is still going on.

The 20-year-old Ganin was stabbed to death in Tallinn on April 27 in 2007. He lived in Mustvee, Estonia, but had Russian citizenship.

The Bronze Night riots began in April 26 in 2007 with the removal of a statue in central Tallinn. Estonians considered the so-called Bronze Soldier in the city center a symbol of Communist repression, while for many in the Russian-speaking community, the statue - originally named "Monument to the Liberators of Tallinn" - symbolized the Soviet victory over Nazi Germany.