Navalny was struck down with 'sudden death syndrome', his mother was told at Russian prison

A view shows the entrance to the IK-3 penal colony, where Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny served his jail term and where he died the day before, according to prison authorities, in the settlement of Kharp in the Yamal-Nenets Region, Russia February 17, 2024. REUTERS/Maxim Shemetov

KHARP, Russia (Reuters) -Alexei Navalny's mother was told on Saturday that Russia's most prominent opposition leader had been struck down by "sudden death syndrome" and that his body would not be handed over to the family until an investigation was completed, his team said.

Navalny, a 47-year-old former lawyer, fell unconscious and died on Friday after a walk at the "Polar Wolf" penal colony in Kharp, about 1,900 km (1,200 miles) northeast of Moscow, where he was serving a three-decade sentence, the prison service said.