Girenko participated in the ethnic minorities' rights group of this legislative body and chaired a similar committee of the Saint Petersburg Union of Scientists.

One night in November 2003, unknown individuals broke through the entrance to the office of Union of Scientists and left a note, "We will be whacking you, science freaks!".

[2] Vladimir Popov, leader of the neo-Nazi group Russian Republic, claimed responsibility for the killing in an interview to the Agency of Journalistic Investigations on 24 June 2004.

[citation needed] As of June 2005, the official investigation had found no suspects, according to the newspaper Tainy Sovetnik.

[3] Yelena Ordynskaya, senior assistant to the city Prosecutor, said the investigation found that Russian Republic published its "death sentence" to Girenko a few days after the murder.

[4] The city court of Saint Petersburg sentenced 12 members of a Combat Terrorist Organization led by Voevodin and Borovikov.