The mysterious death of Russian President Vladimir Putin’s former chief propagandist in Washington, DC, has taken a new turn Down Under, where his $50 million superyacht was discovered stranded in Brisbane.
Russian media said Mikhail Lesin, 57, keeled over of a heart attack Nov. 5 in the boutique-style Dupont Circle Hotel, Australia’s Courier Mail reported.
Washington cops have said no cause of death has been determined and there was no obvious sign of foul play, Britain’s Daily Mail reported.
But wild conspiracy theories have been floated about his demise — including that he or the FBI faked his death before he entered the witness-protection program or that he was rubbed out for spilling Russian secrets to the United States.
The 180-foot floating palace, built by the Dutch Heesen shipyards, was photographed abandoned on Christmas Eve at the Rivergate Marina on the Brisbane River after a recent facelift.
Lesin, nicknamed the “Bulldozer” and described as a “Svengali” figure for Putin, allegedly intimidated the Russian press into glorifying his boss during a stint as press chief from 1999 to 2004.
