February 16, 2024

Navalny Found Dead in Cell


Navalny Found Dead in Cell
Alexey Navalny at a protest. The Russian Life files

Multiple news outlets report that, on February 16, Russian anticorruption activist and opposition politician Alexey Navalny was found dead in his prison cell.

The Federal Penitentiary Service of the Yamalo-Nenets Region, which oversees the Kharp prison in which Navalny was housed, said that he felt ill after a walk and lost consciousness. While medical staff tried to resuscitate him, they were ultimately unsuccessful.

The exact cause of death is still unknown, but an investigation is reportedly ongoing. A Telegram video from the day before shows Navalny in apparently good health.

Navalny's work had revolved largely around exposing corruption and nepotism in the Kremlin and among Putin's associates. In January 2021, he and his team posted a video investigating a palatial estate tied to Putin that garnered millions of worldwide views.

Navalny had been a resident of the remote, Arctic Kharp prison, known as "Polar Wolf," since December 2023. He was serving a 19-year sentence for extremism charges.

Navalny was 47 when he passed. He leaves behind a wife, who will likely carry on his activism, and two children.

Russian Life senior editor Paul Richardson met Navalny and interviewed him for Russian Life in 2008. Read about the meeting here.

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