A Russian artist forced into exile has been shot dead in Poland after speaking out against Vladimir Putin.
Semyon Skrepetsky, 44, real name Robert Kuzovkov, was known for portraying the Kremlin leader as an absurd, bloodthirsty dictator in his work.
The activist was gunned down in Poland shortly after receiving a threat from so-called ‘Russian patriots’.
Polish police have launched a manhunt for the killer amid suspicions that Skrepetsky was killed for criticising Russia.
In one satirical artwork, he portrayed Putin as a cruel tyrant with blood on his hands and also ridiculed Belarusian leader Alexander Lukashenko and Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov.
Skrepetsky was shot at close range in Biala Podlaska, near the country’s border with Belarus.
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Medics were unable to save his life despite bystanders beginning immediate resuscitation efforts.
One person being questioned by police is a taxi driver, believed to have driven possible suspects from Warsaw.
Three days before the shooting, the artist had staged a protest outside the Russian embassy in Berlin which saw him pull a Russian flag from a slit in the back of his trousers and throw it into a rubbish bin.
Skrepetsky later protested outside the embassy, carrying a painting of Stalin holding an infant Putin.
Before his death, he said he had received threats of rape from pro-Putin Russians.
Police spokesman Andrzej Fijołek said: ‘We have established the identity of the man who was shot dead today in Biała Podlaska by an unknown man.
‘We are doing everything to apprehend the perpetrator of the murder.’
Fijołek said they’re looking into the murder as a planned assassination and said the killer may have changed clothes.
The shooting has details similar to those of typical political executions in Russia.
The opposition channel Nexta Live, based in Poland, said: ‘This murder is 100% an order from Russia.’
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