Navalny’s body not in morgue where authorities said it was, aides say
Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny’s body is not in the morgue where authorities said it was brought after his death, his team announced Saturday.
“Alexei’s lawyer and his mother have arrived at the Salekhard morgue. It’s closed, however, the colony has assured them it’s working and Navalny’s body is there,” Navalny’s spokeswoman Kira Yarmysh said on X, formerly Twitter.
“The lawyer called the phone number which was on the door. He was told he was the seventh caller today. Alexei’s body is not in the morgue,” Yarmysh added.
She said another Navalny lawyer visited the Salekhard Investigative Committee and was told that “a repeat histological examination was taken” and that his cause of death is still unknown.
The results of the analysis “will supposedly be out next week,” she said.
“It is obvious that they are lying and doing everything not to give the body away.”
She later wrote that the Investigative Committee said Navalny’s body will not be handed over to his family until the forensic examination is complete.
“Only an hour ago, the lawyers were informed that the investigation had been concluded and that something criminal had not been established. They literally lie every time, driving us around in circles and covering their tracks.”
Navalny ally Ivan Zhdanov said that Navalny’s lawyer and mother were told that his cause of death was “sudden death syndrome” when they visited his prison colony earlier Saturday. [Continue reading…]
“The burden of proof…is now on the Kremlin’s hands.”
Russia’s prison service says Putin opposition leader Alexey Navalny collapsed after a walk. Christo Grozev, Navalny’s friend and an investigative journalist on Putin’s “wanted” list — wants them to prove it. pic.twitter.com/XNu9NA20dQ
— OutFrontCNN (@OutFrontCNN) February 17, 2024
A bishop who planned a public prayer for the Russian opposition leader Aleksei A. Navalny was detained as he left his house. Two men were arrested for having a photograph of Mr. Navalny in a backpack. Another man who lay flowers at a memorial said he was beaten by police officers for the small act of remembrance.
As thousands of Russians across the country tried to give voice to their grief for Mr. Navalny, who died in a remote Arctic penal colony on Friday, Russian police officers cracked down, temporarily detaining hundreds and placing more than two dozen in jail.
Until Mr. Navalny’s death at the age of 47, many observers had believed that the Kremlin would limit repression until after presidential elections in mid-March, when President Vladimir V. Putin is all but assured a fifth term. But many now fear that the arrests portend a broader crackdown. [Continue reading…]