MOSCOW, RUSSIA – The list of prominent opposition figures and critics of Russian President Vladimir Putin who have met violent or suspicious deaths continues to grow. The most recent addition to this list is Aleksei Navalny, an imprisoned opposition politician who died under murky circumstances in a Russian prison.
Navalny, known for his crusade against official corruption and leadership of anti-Kremlin protests, passed away on February 16 while serving a 19-year sentence. The Federal Penitentiary Service reported that Navalny fell ill and subsequently lost consciousness after a walk, with the cause of death still under investigation.
His death comes just a month before an upcoming election that is expected to extend Putin’s presidency for another six years. Navalny’s passing adds to the long list of notable individuals who have perished after opposing Putin’s regime.
One such figure is Yevgeny Prigozhin, the head of the Wagner mercenary group with close ties to Putin. Prigozhin died in a plane crash in 2023, following his involvement in various shadowy activities such as a “troll farm” that meddled in U.S. elections and a mercenary army active in Syria, Ukraine, and several African countries. His death came shortly after an abortive mutiny targeting Russia’s military leaders, which embarrassed Putin and exposed the limits of his control.
Sergei Yushenkov, a veteran politician and leader of the anti-Kremlin party Liberal Russia, was shot in front of his Moscow home in 2003. He had been at the forefront of efforts by liberal lawmakers to investigate the possible involvement of the Federal Security Service (FSB) in a series of deadly apartment bombings in 1999.
Notably, Anna Politkovskaya, one of Russia’s most prominent journalists and a vocal critic of rights abuses in Chechnya, was shot dead in her apartment building in 2006. Her killing remains unsolved, with suspicions that Russian authorities will not fully investigate due to potential links to Putin’s government.
These cases shed light on the dangers facing individuals who openly oppose the Putin regime and the risks they endure for their activism. The deaths of such prominent figures contribute to the ongoing debate surrounding Putin’s control and the future of opposition movements in Russia.