Nikolay Andruschenko, a journalist and co-founder at the Novy Peterburg newspaper, died in a local hospital, the Rosbalt news agency reported on Wednesday.

Andruschenko, who was 73 years old, never regained consciousness after suffering a brutal attack on his way to a meeting last month. He suffered major blunt trauma to his head, was hospitalized, and put into a medically-induced coma from which he never recovered.

Andruschenko was renowned for his brave investigative reporting on local crime, corruption, and police brutality. Novy Peterburg, a weekly publication that he co-founded, recently ran a series of articles about city officials' mafia connections.