2024-02-16 11:40:00
(CNN) — Russian opposition leader Alexey Navalny has died in prison, state media agency TASS reports, citing the country’s prison service.
Russia’s prison service said it is investigating Navalny’s “sudden death.”
The opposition leader’s spokeswoman, Kira Yarmysh, said Navalny’s lawyer is traveling to Kharp, where Navalny has been serving his sentence.
“As soon as we have any information, we will communicate it,” Yarmysh said in X.
What the prison service said regarding Navalny’s death
In a statement, Russia’s Federal Penitentiary Service (FSIN) said that “all necessary measures” were taken to try to save the imprisoned opponent.
The text clarifies that Navalny felt unwell following a walk this Friday and that “almost immediately” he lost consciousness.
“The institution’s medical staff arrived punctually and an ambulance was called. All necessary resuscitation measures were taken, but they did not give positive results,” the statement added.
And it says that the emergency doctors confirmed the death of the condemned man.
“The causes of death are being determined,” he concludes.
For his part, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said it was up to doctors to define the cause of Navalny’s death. “As far as we know, in accordance with all regulations, the penitentiary service is carrying out checks and clarifications. This does not require any particular order due to the existing set of rules that are used as a guide,” Peskov told reporters on Friday.
When asked regarding reports that the death was due to a blood clot, Peskov replied: “I don’t know. The doctors must say.”
In August, Navalny had been sentenced to 19 years in prison following being found guilty of creating an extremist community, financing extremist activities and numerous other crimes.
Passengers and journalists take photos of Alexey Navalny as he takes his seat. Archive photo.
By then he was already serving 11 and a half years in a maximum security facility for fraud and other charges that he denied.
President Vladimir Putin was informed of Navalny’s death, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said, according to a report by state-run Ria Novosti.
News in development.
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