Vladimir Yarotsky, a 41-year-old artist imprisoned under politically sensitive criminal statutes, died at Penal Colony No. 9 in Russia’s Krasnodar region, according to the rights project Politzek-Info and SOTAvision.
The official account said Yarotsky died by suicide.
Another prisoner at the colony, journalist Alexander Nozdrinov, said Yarotsky had previously complained of pressure from the prison administration and difficult working conditions. There is no independent evidence establishing a causal connection between those circumstances and his death.
Yarotsky was serving a sentence in cases involving alleged “false information” about the Russian military and desecration of symbols of military glory. One episode concerned a satirical image involving Vladimir Putin.
Russian authorities had not made public the results of an independent investigation into the circumstances of Yarotsky’s death at the time the story emerged.
Yarotsky’s death is established; suicide is the official account, while allegations of pressure are based on another prisoner’s statement.