Lhe beluga found dead at the end of August in Norway, the object of all fantasies, including suspicions of espionage, probably succumbed to a bacterial infection, Norwegian police announced Friday based on an autopsy report.
Named Hvaldimir, a play on words combining the word whale (hval, in Norwegian) and the emblematic Russian first name worn by the master of the Kremlin, Vladimir Putin, the cetacean had become a celebrity in the Scandinavian country where it appeared in 2019 .
Described as young and relatively healthy, he was found lifeless on August 31 in Risavika Bay, on the southwest coast of Norway. Two NGOs then claimed that he had died by gunshot, suspecting “a criminal act”.
An autopsy was ordered from the Veterinary Institute, which quickly announced the discovery of a 35-centimeter stick in the animal’s mouth.
“The report concludes that the probable cause of death was a bacterial infection, possibly as a result of injuries to the mouth caused by a stuck stick,” police official Amund Preede Revheim said on Friday.
“The stick could also have led to difficulty for Hvaldimir in feeding, thus increasing the risk of infection,” he added, quoted in a statement.
The police clarified that no bullet marks had been found and decided not to open an investigation.
During his appearance off the coast of Hammerfest, in the Norwegian Arctic, in 2019, Hvaldimir wore an enigmatic harness fitted with a camera base around his head, with the text “Equipment St.Petersburg” in English.
The beluga also seemed to enjoy human company.
This gave rise to speculation that it was a spy animal from neighboring Russia. Moscow has never officially commented on these speculations.
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