A Russian journalist, known for exposing Vladimir Putin’s secret affair with Olympic champion Alina Kabaeva, has been found dead in Latvia, where he was living in exile.
Grigory Nekhoroshev, 69, a former newspaper editor, was the first to report on Putin’s plans to divorce his wife Lyudmila Putina and marry Kabaeva in 2008. He died in Riga, the capital of Latvia, after suspected poisoning from mushrooms he had picked in the backyard of the house where he lived.
According to witnesses, Nekhoroshev often picked mushrooms, but the ones he consumed turned out to be poisonous. Close friends have said that he was “quite nervous” for fear of a possible attack, given that he had exposed Putin’s private life.
Russian journalist Igors Vatolins, who saw Nekhoroshev shortly before his death, said:
“Nekhoroshev was the first to reveal the name of Putin’s wife, rhythmic gymnastics champion Alina Kabaeva. Putin apparently did not forgive him for this.”
After the news was published, the newspaper “Moskovsky Correspondent” was closed, while Nekhoroshev was interrogated by the secret services and threatened, which forced him to flee.
Putin has never publicly acknowledged his relationship with Kabaeva, who is now 43 and reportedly has two children with him.
This is not the only case of mysterious poisoning. In 2023, Russian professor Vitaly Melnikov, 77, head of the Department of Rocket and Space Systems at RSC Energia, died after severe mushroom poisoning. Doctors were unable to save him, and he passed away two weeks after the onset of symptoms.