Ballet Star Who Slammed Putin's War 'Plunges 60ft to Death' in Latest Mystery Death Linked to Russian Tyrant
Leading ballet dancer Vladimir Shklyarov fell to his death at just 39 years old.
Nov. 18 2024, Published 4:45 p.m. ET
One of the world’s leading ballet dancers has mystically fallen 60ft to his death at just 39 years old.
Vladimir Shklyarov, a renowned Russian performer who spoke out about his country's war in Ukraine, may have allegedly been struggling with an undisclosed drug and alcohol addiction before his fatal fall, RadarOnline.com can reveal.
The worldwide ballet dancer mysteriously fell 60 feet to his death, with some reports claiming he was jumping between balconies.
One crime news agency report claimed the ballet star died from a failed jump between two balconies on the fifth floor of his St. Petersburg apartment building.
Other unconfirmed reports from a law enforcement source alleged that his ex-wife, ballerina Maria Shirinkina, had locked him in his apartment to prevent him from buying drugs – and he fell while attempting to flee.
The dancer's ex-wife appeared to dismiss claims he had suffered from drug and alcohol addiction.
Some reports claimed Shklyarov, who starred at the Metropolitan Opera in New York and the Royal Opera House in London, had previously been suffering from unreported addiction problems.
However, there are also claims that information is misleading and false.
The Mariinsky Theatre in St. Petersburg has not yet disclosed the cause of Shklyarov's death. According to state news agency RIA Novosti, the Russian Investigative Committee said the "preliminary cause of death was an accident".
Shklyarov's ex-wife, whom he shared a young daughter and son with, detailed his passing as a "great tragedy" and negated the claims he was suffering from drug and alcohol addiction.
The ballerina claimed he was on painkillers and preparing for foot surgery before his death, adding that he went out to smoke on "a very narrow balcony" and fell five stories in "a stupid, unbearable accident".
She added: "He loved life, family, adored his children and his audience."
Putin warned during a televised appearance Russia would hit back.
It was also revealed that just before his death, he wrote to his doctor, saying: "The surgery is urgent. I’m not ready, but I have no choice. I can’t keep living with this pain."
Along with his fame as a dancer, Shklyarov also became known for being extremely vocal about his defiant standpoint on Putin's war in Ukraine.
He posted in 2022: "Friends! I am against the war in Ukraine! I am for the people, for a peaceful sky above our heads. Politicians should be able to negotiate without shooting and killing civilians, for this they were given a tongue and a head.
"My grandfather, Anatoly Filimonovich, graduated from school in Ukraine with a gold medal, my great-grandmother Sonya lived her whole life in Kyiv. It is impossible to watch everything that is happening today without tears...I want to dance...I want to love everyone - that is the purpose of my life... I do not want wars or borders. Vladimir Shklyarov."
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The dancer said in 2022 he was against Putin's war in Ukraine and slammed politicians for 'shooting and killing civilians'.
While many Putin critics have suffered unexplained early deaths, it is currently unknown if his war criticism was related to his passing in any way.
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