The body is said to be kept in a Russian hospital

The body of Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny, who died in custody, has been kept at a district hospital in the northern Siberian city of Salekhort, according to a media report.

An autopsy has yet to take place, at least until Saturday, the Kremlin's main Novaya Gazeta Europa reported on Sunday, citing its own informants. Also, it is said that there were injuries on the body of the deceased.

There is no official confirmation of this information initially. Relatives are still not allowed access to the body of 47-year-old Navalny.

Salekhort is the capital of the Yamal-Nenets Autonomous Okrug. The “Polar Wolf” prison camp where Navalny died is about 50 kilometers northwest as the crow flies – already beyond the Arctic Circle.

According to Russian officials, Navalny, who was back in solitary confinement for several days, became physically weak and collapsed while walking in the freezing cold at the prison camp on Friday. According to the Prison Service, resuscitation attempts were unsuccessful.

Human rights activists accuse the Russian power apparatus of murder. Key staff of the anti-corruption campaigner also believed that Navalny was deliberately killed.

Navalny's mother has tried unsuccessfully to pick up her dead son. The body was not handed over to her either in the penal colony or in Salekhard.

Novaya Gazeta quotes an anonymous employee of the emergency service. According to him, the injuries indicate that Navalny had a seizure before his death and was arrested by prison camp staff. A bruise on the chest is a sign that resuscitation efforts were indeed made.

However, the newspaper report shows that the informant did not see Navalny after his death, but was only informed of his condition by colleagues.