Russian President Vladimir Putin did not order the death of his political arch nemesis Alexei Navalny, U.S. intelligence sources believe.
While Putin may well have wanted him dead, U.S. intelligence sources said, there was “no smoking gun” indicating the Russian leader was aware of the timing, which happened just before his reelection in March.
Navalny, 47, was serving a 19-year prison sentence for what he and others said were trumped-up extremism charges in a remote penal colony within the Arctic Circle when he died suddenly on Feb. 16.
Russian officials blamed his death on natural causes, but never provided details. They said only that he had felt unwell after a walk, lost consciousness and that paramedics had tried unsuccessfully to revive him.
Navalny’s death brought even more sanctions upon the Russian economy and tore apart talks just as a prisoner swap seemed imminent between Russia and the West. Those included two U.S. citizens deemed wrongfully imprisoned: Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich and Paul Whelan, a former U.S. Marine who was working as a corporate security executive when he was thrown into jail in 2018.
Both he and Gerschkovich are accused of spying, a claim denied by both parties and their respective organizations.
Putin after Navalny’s death said a deal had been in the works to free him.
The assessment provided no answers as to what did happen, and it also did not let Putin off the hook for the ultimate responsibility. The intelligence merely found that Putin hadn’t specifically ordered it at that time, The Wall Street Journal first reported.
The intelligence community and numerous agencies, from the CIA to the State Department, believe its veracity, The Wall Street Journal said.
With News Wire Services