Speaking in a video posted to YouTube titled “Why did Putin kill Navalny now?” Russian journalist and anti-corruption activist Maria Pevchikh alleged that Putin had Navalny killed because he didn’t want the exchange to go through.
“Navalny was supposed to be free in the coming days because we had received a decision on his exchange,” Pevchikh said in the video.
“In early February, Putin was offered to swap the FSB killer, Vladim Krasikov, who is serving time for murder in Berlin for two American citizens and Alexey Navalny,” she said.
Pevchikh added that the negotiations for the deal were at “the final stage” the night before Navalny’s death.
Pevchikh noted that Putin had expressed interest in a prisoner swap involving Krasikov in his interview with Tucker Carlson at the beginning of February.
In the interview, Putin said he would be open to exchanging American journalist Evan Gershkovich — who is being detained in a Moscow prison — for Krasikov, a Russian assassin who was convicted for the murder of Zelimkhan Khangoshvil, a Georgian military officer of Chechen descent, in 2019.
Putin didn’t directly name Krasikov — but he didn’t need to. He was apparent in his reference to “a person, due to patriotic sentiments, eliminated a bandit in one of the European capitals” during “the events in the Caucasus.”
This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.
