Evidence points to foul play in Navalny's sudden death
Journalists from the independent Russian service, The Insider, gained access to documents related to the death of Alexei Navalny. These documents indicate that the authorities deliberately removed mentions of specific symptoms of the opposition leader that did not align with the official version of his death. Doctors confirm these symptoms clearly indicate poisoning.
The Russian opposition leader died on February 16, 2024, in the Polarny Wilk penal colony, located just 40 miles north of the Arctic Circle. It was determined that no third parties contributed to his death. The official cause of death was stated as "cardiac arrhythmia." Therefore, the Russian Investigative Committee concluded that the case "was not criminal in nature."
Journalists from The Insider obtained documents describing the last moments of Navalny's life. They indicate that just before his death, Navalny complained of severe abdominal pain.
Two versions of one decision
The Insider accessed two versions of the decision to refuse to initiate a criminal case, signed by Major Judge Alexander Varapayev. The first version states that on February 16, Navalny "felt a sharp deterioration of his health condition while in exercise yard." He reported the symptoms to the duty officer, who then took him indoors. There, Navalny "lay down on the floor and began to complain of sharp pain in the abdominal area."
Removed because it didn't fit
In the later version of the same decision (which became final), abdominal pain was no longer mentioned. According to The Insider journalists, these details were removed because they did not fit the officially stated cause of Navalny's death.
The Insider journalists also possess another document confirming that Navalny complained of abdominal pain and vomited before his death. It is an inventory of "seized items." However, later documents make no mention of any examination or collection of samples.
Attempted poisoning with Novichok in 2020
Alexander Polupan, who treated Navalny after the Novichok poisoning in 2020, stated that the symptoms described in the first version of the document do not match the official cause of death given by the Russians.
- These symptoms can hardly be explained by anything other than poisoning - he emphasized in an interview with The Insider journalists. He added that the opposition leader could have been poisoned with a substance similar to novichok, but "it may have been applied internally rather than topically."
In 2020, Navalny was taken with symptoms of poisoning to the Charite Hospital in Germany. After conducting toxicological tests, the government of the Federal Republic of Germany issued a statement announcing that the substance Navalny was poisoned with belongs to the novichok chemical group. The same compound was used to poison, among others, Sergei Skripal - a double agent who worked in both the Russian and British intelligence services.
