Navalny spokeswoman Kira Yarmysh writes that a funeral is imminent.
February 24, 2024, 11:40 a.m. ET
• 3 min reading
Russian authorities have returned Alexei Navalny's body to his mother, more than a week after the opposition leader's death in an Arctic penal colony, according to Navalny's spokesman.
Speaker Kira Yarmysh wrote on Xformerly Twitter, that a funeral is coming and that they don't yet know whether authorities will allow the family to hold the funeral “as the family wants and as Alexey deserves.” She did not mention whether the family would have a public one funeral will be held.
Russian officials said Navalny's body was taken to the Arctic Circle town of Salekhard after he died in a nearby penal colony on February 16. His supporters have accused Russian officials of murdering President Vladimir Putin's vocal critic, who had previously been poisoned and almost died in an apparent assassination attempt.
Russian officials disputed claims that Navalny was assassinated in retaliation for his political activities. Navalny's cause of death was listed as “natural” in his medical report, according to Navalny's spokesman, who relayed the information to his mother.
Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny attends a rally in Moscow, Russia, on February 24, 2019. Tatyana Makeyeva/Portal
Navalny's mother, Lyudmila Navalnaya, asked local police on Friday to open a criminal case against investigators who she said withheld her son's body on charges of “abuse of a corpse.”
The appeal alleged that the lead investigator into Navalny's death made threats to his mother and promised to commit illegal acts with Navalny's body to prevent his burial.
Navalnaya said in a video message posted on YouTube on Thursday that the Russian government was blackmailing her and trying to force her to hold a secret funeral for her son.
“As one of the arguments, the investigator said, 'Time is working against you because the body is decomposing,'” the complaint states. “Such words cause irreparable moral damage.” [to Navalny’s mom]“The grief over the loss of her son is complemented by an absolutely insulting attitude of the investigative authorities and blackmail,” the document says.
Meanwhile, the White House on Friday announced a series of sanctions against Russia and its supporters, including additional measures aimed at punishing the Kremlin for its alleged role in Navalny's death.