Russian Olympic Official Vladimir Putin Fired Claims He's Been Poisoned

Remember that Russian Olympic Official who Vladimir Putin decided to make an example of by firing on national television? Well, his name is Akhmed Bilalov. Depending on who you talk to, he’s either an unfortunate scapegoat who was in the wrong place at the wrong time, a rich man who tried to take advantage of the Russian government and got caught or a poisoning victim.

That last possibility is currently being espoused by Bilalov himself. He fled the Motherland after Putin called him out for charging the government more than two hundred million dollars for an unfinished ski jump. Recently in Germany, he went in for a checkup, and according to The Guardian, doctors allegedly discovered mercury at more than four times the typical levels. Bilalov isn’t pointing any fingers as to who might be responsible, but he definitely thinks someone is responsible. That might seem unbelievable to some readers, but people sometimes use strange methods in assassination attempts in Russia.

Bilalov is planning to return to Russia soon and will ask the authorities to launch an investigation into whether someone poisoned his office in Moscow. All of the employees of his company are currently being tested, as well, though those results have not come in yet. Regardless, with the international press now focused on this story, one would imagine the ex-Olympic Official will be safe, if he was ever even in danger to begin with.

Without Bilalov, the upcoming Winter Olympics are still progressing slower and more expensively than expected. Hopefully, these monetary issues won’t alter any of the cool other plans Russia currently has in the pipeline, and hopefully, Bilalov will return without issue to the Motherland in the coming weeks, healthier and a whole lot less paranoid.