Alexei Navalny is missing in Russia's penal system - allies

FILE PHOTO: Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny is seen on a screen via video link from a penal colony in the Vladimir Region during a hearing at the Basmanny district court in Moscow, Russia April 26, 2023. REUTERS/Yulia Morozova/File Photo

MOSCOW (Reuters) -Allies of jailed Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny said on Friday that it was still unclear where he was after prison authorities said he was no longer in the penal colony where he had been serving his sentence.

Navalny, a former lawyer who rose to prominence by lampooning President Vladimir Putin's elite and alleging vast corruption, was sentenced in August to an additional 19 years in prison on top of 11-1/2 years he was already serving.