Navalny's mother: “Vladimir Putin, let me finally see my son and be able to bury him”

Lyudmila Navalnaya, mother of the dead Russian opposition leader, Alexei Navalnycalled on Russian President Vladimir Putin to hand over her son's body to her.

“Vladimir Putin, let me finally see my son,” Navalnaya said in a video message. Speaking against the backdrop of the infamous prison, his mother – dressed in black – complained that she did not even know where her son's body was and demanded that Putin order her release.

Navalny, 47, reportedly passed out and died on Friday after a walk in “Policos Lykos” penitentiary center in the Arctic Circle. Authorities at the prison where he was being held said he suffered from “sudden death syndrome,” his team said. It is unclear whether an autopsy has yet been performed on his body.

“For the fifth day I can't see him, they don't give me his body and don't even tell me where he is,” he said in the message broadcast on the Navalny LIVE YouTube channel.

“I appeal to you, Vladimir Putin. Solving this issue is only up to you. Let me finally see my son,” he said, adding: “I demand that Alexei's body be released immediately so I can give him a humane burial.”

Yesterday, the Navalny's widow, Yuliaaccused Russian President Vladimir Putin of being responsible for her husband's death, claiming he was poisoned with the nerve agent Novichok.

Yulia Navalnaya has renewed her request for her husband's body to be returned to her “for a dignified burial”. Responding to Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov's comments, he said: “I don't care how the killer's press officer comments on my words. Give back Alexei's body and let him be buried with dignity, don't stop people from saying goodbye to him. And I really ask all journalists who may still be asking questions: don't ask about me, ask about Alexei.”