Enigma of death grips Russia as son of ‘Only Man Putin Trusts’ dies mysteriously of same reason as Alexei Navalny

It seems to be an open season for assassinations in Russia. While the world was shocked by the news of Opposition star Alexei Navalny’s death in the ‘Polar Wolf’ penal colony in the Arctic, even more, surprising is the death of the son of oil oligarch Igor Sechin–’the only man Putin trusts’. Yet bizarre are reports that Ivan Sechin, 35, died of the same cause as Navalny.

Ivan, though, died before Navalny.

According to reports, Ivan’s death was kept a secret for weeks, before it leaked on Telegram channels.

‘Out of Breath’

Ivan reportedly complained of “suffocation” and died from a “detached blood clot”, the same cause of death given to Navalny.

Navalny died on Friday (16 February) in a Siberian penal colony.

The junior Sechin, who was believed to be in good health, died in his mansion in the elite Europe-1 village in Krasnogorsk close to Moscow. As per reports, Ivan was buried three days after his death.

Details on Telegram

“At approximately 4:30 am (local time) on the night of 5 February, 35-year-old Ivan complained that he felt bad and was suffocating. The man fell on the bed and lost consciousness. Those around him carried Ivan to the floor and tried to provide primary resuscitation measures,” read the message on ‌Telegram channel VChK-OGPU, which has close law enforcement contacts.

“At the same time, Ivan Sechin’s security guard called an ambulance. When the ambulance arrived at the scene, the doctors were only able to ascertain Ivan’s death,” it was posted.

As per reports, the ambulance took one-and-a-half hours to reach Ivan’s home.

Originally, the same cause was given for the death of Navalny. It was later announced that the Russian opposition leader died of “sudden death syndrome”.

There are widespread claims that Navalny, Putin’s most vociferous critic,  was killed on orders by the Russian President.

Father Launches Private Probe

The Telegram channel further claimed that Igor Sechin prevented Russia’s Investigative Committee, FSB and other security forces from examining the circumstances of his son’s death.

Instead, he deployed the Rosneft Security Service, comprising of former FSB and Investigative Committee employees personally loyal to Sechin.

Who was Ivan Sechin?

Ivan is the son of Igor Sechin, nicknamed Darth Vader of the Kremlin due to his behind-the-scenes influence.

Igor is a powerful head of oil giant Rosneft with a fortune worth an estimated $800 million. He is a confidante of Putin since the 1990s.

As per reports, Ivan was the only son of Putin’s right-hand man. He was considered highly secretive, and used the pseudonym Evgeny Anatolyevich Panin, possibly to hide his wealth or for security reasons.

Ivan worked as an executive on offshore projects for Rosneft and accompanied his father on foreign trips. He was a graduate from Moscow State University and had also worked as an analyst at Kremlin-cosy Gazprombank.

His is the latest of dozens of mysterious deaths - many in the energy sector - since the start of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine on 24 February 2022.

‌Ivan’s death news also comes amid speculation that the sons and daughters of Putin’s aging circle are poised to gain new political and business power after next month’s presidential election.

With inputs from agencies