(CNN) Officials of Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny, who died in prison, tried to arrange for a hearse to transport Navalny’s body to the funeral venue on February 29, but the identity of the person remains unknown. It was revealed that the attack was interfered with by multiple people.
Spokesperson Kira Yarmysh said the drivers had been threatened by phone not to take Navalny’s body anywhere.
Yarmis also revealed that he was told that “no hearse was available to transport the body.”
Securing a funeral home was also difficult. The funeral is expected to be held at 2:00 pm local time on March 1 at a church in Moscow’s Marino district, where Navalny once lived, after which he will be buried at the Borisov cemetery.
The church where Navalny’s funeral will be held in Moscow, Russia/Olga Maltseva/AFP/Getty Images via CNN Newsource
Many funeral homes claimed to be busy or refused reservations as soon as Navalny’s name was mentioned. Some funeral homes specifically stated that they were prohibited from contracting with Navalny’s team.
Ivan Zhudanov, head of Navalny’s anti-corruption foundation, had originally planned a public memorial service and funeral for February 29, but was told that “cemetery workers who could dig the graves were not available.” He revealed that he was told.
Navalny died on February 16 in a Siberian prison. He was serving a 19-year sentence in August last year after being found guilty of crimes including founding an extremist organization and providing financial support to extremist activists.