A top Russian judge who attended university alongside Vladimir Putin has become the latest public figure to die in ‘mysterious’ circumstances. The death of Irina Podnosova, 71, has prompted speculation among Ukrainian commentators that those who “know too much about the secrets of the Kremlin elite continue to die.”
Podnosova became the first woman to be appointed as Chief Justice of Russia’s Supreme Court in April 2024, after being personally recommended by Putin. She is understood to have been battling cancer in recent months, but no official cause of death has been given. Ukrainian Telegram channel Pravda Gerashchenko reported: “A series of deaths of high-ranking government officials continues in Russia – a classmate of Putin, appointed just over a year ago as the head of the supreme court, has died.”
The report added: “The exact cause of Podnosova’s death is not yet known.
“Russian propaganda ‘media’ report that she died after a ‘serious illness’.
“In Russia, people who knew too much about the secrets of the Kremlin elite continue to die.”
In recent years, dozens of high-ranking Russian officials have died in mysterious circumstances, with several falling from the windows of tall buildings.
Earlier this month, Andrey Badalov, a 62-year-old oil tycoon, fell from a luxury penthouse building, with his cause of death given as suicide.
Officials allege that a suicide note was later found, but critics of the regime suspect foul play.
Putin’s transport minister Roman Starovoit, 53, was found dead with several gunshot wounds this month. His official cause of death also listed as a suicide.
Last year, prominent war official Marina Yankina, 58, a finance official at Russia’s Ministry of Defence, fell from the 16th floor of a St Petersburg apartment complex whilst in 2022, Ravil Maganov, chairman of Lukoil, Russia’s second-largest oil company, was found dead after plunging from the sixth floor of a Moscow hospital.
Regime critics allege that the death of Podnosova is the latest in a string of strange deaths. The judge shared details of her time at university with the Russian leader in 2001 where she studied law at the Soviet university alongside the future KGB colonel.
She said: “I well remember the last New Year – everyone dressed in masquerade costumes, and Vladimir came in a modest suit.
“He commented: ‘This is Stierlitz’s outfit,’ a reference to a legendary fictional spy.
She continued: “That New Year’s Eve, everyone paired off, and only Putin left the party alone…
“He didn’t dance at discos – he just stood by the wall talking quietly, we preferred more outgoing guys.”