But his employees, family members and much of international public opinion have little doubt. Some even think he was murdered, while most believe Navalny died because of everything that was done to him. First, the poisoning with Novichok, a nerve agent; then prison with hardships that seem unimaginable to us. After being sentenced to 19 years in prison (although he still had other charges to face), he ended up in prison in January 2021. In total, he had spent 300 days in solitary confinement because his family denounced ridiculous shortcomings or flimsy accusations. “The prisoner had not fastened the last button of his jacket,” 15 days in solitary confinement. “Navalny insulted Lieutenant Nejmovich by calling him that instead of using his name and patronymic,” 15 days. “The prisoner cleaned the yard badly,” 15 days. In these special cells, the bed is raised and attached to the wall in the morning so that inmates cannot lie or sit all day. The food provided was “terrible and scarce,” said his spokeswoman Kira Yarmysh.
For a year and a half he was not allowed to meet or speak on the phone with his wife and two children. The three lawyers he met regularly were again accused of extremism. Two are in prison and one has fled abroad.
A situation for which his wife Julia directly questioned the president in Monaco: “This regime and Vladimir Putin are personally responsible for all the terrible things they have done to our country, to my family and to my husband.” » .
Until early December, Navalny was in a penal colony in Vladimir, 200 kilometers from Moscow. Then the transfer to the Great North, where temperatures drop to 40 degrees below zero during this time.
Before he left, he had already become sick in his cell and fell to the floor. The doctors immediately rushed to open the bed again and put an IV in his arm.
Navalny told Kharp through his lawyers that he was “allowed to leave” alone in what he called “another cell.” However, so that things don't get too pleasant for this very special prisoner, his exercise session begins at 6:30 a.m. in arctic temperatures.
According to the official story, the former blogger was “out for a walk” (out in the fresh air for an hour) when he suddenly felt sick. According to the Telegram channel Baza, this happened at 1 p.m. local time, contrary to prison routine. Attempted resuscitation, then more doctors arrived from Labytnangi Hospital, 34 kilometers away (“in seven minutes,” according to an official statement from local authorities), who continued cardiac massage for half an hour.
Putin was immediately informed of the incident but said nothing. His spokesman took the “unacceptable” reactions of all Western heads of state and government to task, as it was still not known what exactly happened.
And in circles close to the Kremlin it is said that this death, which comes a month before the presidential elections, is a big headache for Putin, who expected a boring (without real opponents) but calm confirmation. Flowers were laid in many cities. And the prosecutor's office immediately warned everyone that demonstrations would violate the law.