Russia extends deadline for preliminary probe into Kremlin foe Navalny’s death in prison, ally says

By DASHA LITVINOVA
Associated Press

TALLINN, Estonia (AP) — Russian authorities have extended the deadline for a preliminary probe into the still unexplained death of imprisoned Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny, according to his ally. Ivan Zhdanov, director of Navalny’s Anti-Corruption Foundation, said on the messaging app Telegram that the deadline has been extended until April 20, which means that “there is still no official information from the government about the cause of death” of President Vladimir Putin’s fiercest foe. Navalny, 47, died February in a remote Artic penal colony, where he was serving a 19-year sentence on extremism charges widely seen as politically motivated. Navalny was buried Friday in a Moscow suburb in a funeral that drew thousands of mourners amid a heavy police presence.