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Russia says Navalny’s allies removed evidence

Tuesday, 22 September 2020 11:17 AM [ Last Update: Tuesday, 22 September 2020 11:30 AM ]

This handout picture, posted on the Instagram account of Alexei Navalny on September 19, 2020, shows the Russian opposition figure in Charite Hospital, in Berlin, Germany. (Via AFP)

Russia says its efforts to investigate the case of opposition figure Alexei Navalny, who is alleged to have been poisoned, face challenges as his allies have removed evidence from the country and as Germany has failed to provide his medical records.

“You see, they (Russian investigators) are experiencing certain problems, because, unfortunately, much of the evidence was taken away. Here we must understand if it’s a deliberate attempt to hide some evidence or not,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said on Tuesday.

He also told reporters that Russia was still facing difficulties in obtaining information in the case from Germany.

Navalny, 44, was airlifted to Germany on August 22. He had collapsed during a domestic flight on August 20 and had been taken to a local hospital prior to his transfer to Berlin. Navalny's aides have claimed he was poisoned after drinking a bottle of water at a hotel before the flight.

Earlier this month, Germany said the Russian opposition figure had been poisoned with a Novichok nerve agent before his evacuation to Berlin. But the Russian doctors who tested his blood for poisoning before he was moved to Germany said the tests were negative.

Russian prosecutors have asked Germany to provide the medical records of Navalny for a comparative study of his condition, but Germany has refused to produce that information.