It was stated today that a suspected body duplicate used as a stand-in for Vladimir Putin was poisoned with “toxic substances.” This comes as the “main doppelgänger” was named independently for the first time as Yevgeny Vasilyevich, a carpenter originally from Belarus. According to the Telegram channel General SVR, the Putin stand-in “developed rashes on the skin of the upper and lower extremities, as well as on the neck, which doctors initially mistook for an allergy.” According to the channel, one or more Putin lookalikes are often used as body doubles for the 71-year-old ruler, a theory corroborated by Ukrainian military intelligence.
Kremlin doctors gave medication but “when the test results became known, they urgently contacted the Secretary of the Security Council of the Russian Federation, Nikolai Patrushev, who was informed that the double had been exposed to toxic substances”, said the channel. “The life of the backup was not in danger – probably the dose was too small. Now they are trying to figure out how the toxic substance entered the body of the double.”
The FSB and FSO security agencies initiated an investigation into a possible assassination attempt, according to the channel, which claims to have intimate information about the Kremlin while offering no actual evidence and is widely regarded as a source of conspiracy theories. It was claimed that the stand-in was employed for “numerous meetings and events” and that while acting as the president, he was in contact with several persons who may have poisoned the stand-in.
Meanwhile, according to a Russian political analyst, the main stand-in is a “fourth-rate carpenter” from Belarus. According to Dr. Valery Solovey, a former professor at Moscow’s famed Institute of International Relations [MGIMO], a training institution for Russian spies and diplomats, the doppelgänger’s real name is Yevgeny Vasilyevich.
Ukrainian conspiracy theorist claims Putin uses stand-ins, cites New Year message
Dr. Solovey, who has been labeled a “foreign agent” by the Russian authorities, suggested in his most recent video that the carpenter impersonator had been taught by Moscow’s secret services to impersonate Putin. This week, Ukraine’s military intelligence service stated that the Kremlin has at least three Putin stand-ins.
According to Dr. Solovey, a conspiracy theorist, it was carpenter Yevgeny Vasilyevich who transmitted Putin’s New Year message, which was viewed throughout all 11 Russian time zones. Like the Telegram channel, he had long maintained that the actual Putin was very ill with cancer, and he told followers in October 2023 that the Russian president had died, to be replaced by doppelgängers eventually commanded by the enigmatic Nikolai Patrushev, 72, previously head spymaster at the FSB.
“Those of you, dear friends, who saw the so-called New Year greeting of the so-called Russian President, probably noticed that it was very short,” said Dr Solovey. “It was not just very short, it was one of the shortest in the history of Putin [New Year messages]… Why was it one of the shortest? The answer is clear. So that you don’t look and listen. Not to look at the appearance and not to listen to the voice of the man.
“This man, Putin’s double, is called Yevgeny Vasilyevich. He comes from Belarus. Originally from Belarus. Yevgeny Vasilyevich. Yes, a fourth-rate carpenter. That’s the truth.”
Speculation swirls around New Year’s show featuring possible AI Putin
Others have speculated that the New Year’s Eve show featured an AI image of Putin. According to witnesses, the Russian president’s neck appeared out of sync with his body, as if his head had been overlaid for the televised speech.
Dr. Solovey, a political analyst, did not reveal the suspected imposter’s surname, instead referring to him by his assumed first name Yevgeny and patronymic, or middle name, Vasilyevich.
Since last year, jokes have referred to a body double named ‘Vasilyevich’ after top Russian churchman Patriarch Kirill, head of the Orthodox Church, addressed Putin during a meeting as “Your Excellency, much-esteemed Vladimir Vasilyevich,” before correcting himself to name the president Vladimir Vladimirovich.