Galina Vasilyevna Starovoitova was a Russian politician and ethnographer known for her work to protect ethnic minorities and promote democratic reforms in Russia. She was shot to death in her apartment building on November 20, 1998.

Starovoitova was gunned down in the entryway of her apartment building on November 20, 1998. Her aide, Ruslan Linkov, was wounded in the attack. The murder investigation took place under the personal control of Interior Minister Sergei Stepashin who is the former FSB boss and future Prime Minister of Russia. In June 2005 two killers, Yuri Kolchin and Vitali Akishin, were convicted for the murder and sentenced to 20 and 23 years of imprisonment respectively.

Akishin was the one who actually pulled the trigger and Kolchin was one of the people who had organized the attack. On September 28, 2006, Vyacheslav Lelyavin was sentenced to 11 years in prison for his role in organizing the murder. Still searched for the investigation are Sergey Musin, Oleg Fedosov and Igor Bogdanov.

Former Russian Parliament member and human rights activist Valery Borshev alleged that people who were responsible for this assassination and paid for it have never been found, and alleged that this is similar with the murder of priest Alexander Men.