Another Putin ally dead after "suffocating" on business trip

The editor-in-chief of Russian state newspaper Komsomolskaya Pravda died of a "stroke" during a business trip, the latest Putin ally to expire in mysterious circumstances.

Vladimir Nikolayevich Sungorkin, 68, was reportedly showing signs of "suffocation" when he died on September 14, Daily Mail reports.

The 68-year-old was travelling towards Khabarovsk with colleagues from the paper before they were due to head to Moscow when he fell unconscious.

His colleague Leonid Zakharov explained that three minutes later, Vladimir began to suffocate and the group took him out for fresh air.

He said that no one could save him and he sadly passed away, with the doctor who initially examined him concluding that he died of a stroke.

Mr Sungorkin fell ill minutes after he said that the group should "find a beautiful place somewhere... for lunch" according to the media outlet.

Putin praised the staunch pro-Kremlin media outlet Komosomolskaya Pravda in 2020 on the 95th anniversary of its first issue.

He wrote in a statement: "The legendary Komsomolka has travelled a long creative path over these years and has written brilliant unforgettable pages in the history of the Russian media.

"It is crucial that the current staff of the newspaper pass on these traditions from generation to generation and strive to retain the newspaper's flagship position in the Russia media market."

Mr Sungorkin's colleagues wrote in an obituary that the journalist was a "symbol of new national journalism" and had built the newspaper into a "mighty empire."