A Russian general who kept secrets about Vladimir Putin’s £1 billion Black Sea palace has mysteriously died in prison.
General Gennady Lopyrev, 69, suddenly fell ill Monday – gasping for breath – and was told by doctors that he had previously undiagnosed leukemia.
There are now suspicions that he was poisoned just as he was eligible for parole.
The general was sentenced to 10 years in prison by a military court in 2017 for taking bribes and illegally possessing ammunition – allegations he has always denied.
He served in the Federal Protection Service (FSO) and personally supervised the construction of the giant Gelendzhik Palace on Putin’s cliff, a private residence reportedly built with state money.
He was also responsible for the official residence of the dictator Bocharov Ruchei in Sochi.
Until his imprisonment, he had been one of Putin’s closest security associates and was seen in Moscow in 2002 with Russian President and then British Prime Minister Tony Blair.
It comes as another Russian general, who led the invasion of Ukraine until he was purged by Putin, also met a suspiciously sudden end this week.
General Gennady Lopyrev, 69, suddenly fell ill Monday – gasping for breath – and was told by doctors that he had previously undiagnosed leukemia.
General Gennady Lopyrev, highlighted, is seen during Tony and Cherie Blair’s visit to Russia
Aerial view of Vladimir Putin’s alleged palace in Gelendzhik, south of Russia
Gen Lopyrev was healthy when he spoke to his son Alexander on Sunday, but suddenly fell ill on Monday, complaining of speech and breathing difficulties, Telegram channel VChK-OGPU reported.
“He couldn’t breathe and had a hoarse voice,” the channel said, comparing the symptoms to those of Putin foe Alexei Navalny who had been poisoned with nerve agent Novichok.
Lopyrev was transferred from penal colony number 3 in the Ryazan region to two hospitals on Monday.
He told his son Alexander by phone: “I was first taken to Skopin (hospital), and they did not find anything convincing there.
“Now they took me to Ryazan Regional Hospital and said I had leukemia.”
The son said, “But isn’t leukemia cancer… It can’t catch you in two days, can it?”
Speaking to media, Alexander said: “I also spoke to the head of their medical unit, who said his heart check was back to normal and his lungs were clear.
“It’s hard to say exactly what happened. We were getting ready to file for his parole because it was time (to apply)… And now this call (to say he had passed away).
“It’s all very weird and way too fast.”
His father was extremely fit and routinely practiced gymnastics while in the penal colony, Alexander claimed.
“Everything was fine on Sunday,” he said. “We had a conversation through a phone booth, there was not a single complaint about his health.
“His voice was energetic, talking about his usual sports like gymnastics and stretching. Every day he walked 15 km (9 mi).
On Monday he called in a suddenly hoarse voice. Monday night… he called from (hospital in) Ryazan and said he was feeling very unwell… he said he was having trouble breathing.’
Viktor Boborykin, chairman of the Public Monitoring Commission for the region, said there was “nothing criminal” about his death.
Navalny had previously identified General Lopyrev as responsible for Gelendzhik and knew all the secrets of its financing.
Putin’s Black Sea Palace includes a pole-dancing boudoir with a hookah, a casino and an “aqua disco.”
It has a 16-storey underground complex that has been compared to a James Bond villain’s lair.
A mining engineer working on the structure was indeed built for the president and “there’s a whole anthill in the rock below the house” including a nuclear shelter.
The underground maze includes a loggia on a cliff overlooking the sea and a huge wine cellar.
General Lopyrev’s death followed that of Colonel General Gennady Zhidko, 58.
Zhidko briefly led the invasion of Ukraine as commander of the southern forces before giving way to General Sergei “Armageddon” Surovikin in October.
Gennady Zhidko, Hero of Russia and commander of the Eastern Military District in 2022, died at the age of 58
Vladimir Putin congratulates Major General Gennady Zhidko on being awarded the title of Hero of the Russian Federation at the Kremlin State Palace on December 28, 2017
The 58-year-old also served as Chief of Staff of the Russian Armed Forces in Syria in 2016 and was appointed commander of the Eastern Military District in 2018.
The senior official – who was awarded the highest honorary title, the Hero of Russia, for his services in 2017 – later became deputy defense minister in 2021.
Zhidko was removed from his role in Ukraine in October 2022 – as commander of Putin’s “special military operation” – after failing to take the city of Kharkiv.
He has been seen in charge since April after taking over from deposed general Alexander Dvornikov, dubbed the “butcher of Syria.”
The role led to Western sanctions against Zhidko.
Surovikin, who replaced him, was later demoted from his position by Chief of General Staff Valery Gerasimov.
Surovikin remained his deputy but was allegedly detained in June on suspicion that he was aware of plans for a coup against Putin’s regime by Wagner chief mercenary Yevgeny Prigozhin.
Little had been seen of Zhidko in recent months.
His death was confirmed by the loyalist governor of the Khabarovsk region, Mikhail Degtyarev, who expressed his condolences, but there was no official announcement.
The reports did not say where Zhidko died.
The commander was considered one of the best military brains in Russia.