How ruthless Russian oligarchs are ‘MURDERING each other’ in bloody battle for power in Putin’s ‘viper’s nest’

RUSSIAN oligarchs are murdering each other in a bloody battle for power in Putin’s depraved “viper’s nest”, according to one expert.

Russia savant Bill Browder said the oligarchs were scrambling to protect their wealth after being hit hard by Western sanctions.

The renowned banker – who fell out with Putin while managing the country’s largest foreign investment firm – told the MailOnline that the recent spate of “suicides” among Russia’s elites were “all murders”.

Speaking at a Henry Jackson Society conference, Browder said: “What you have going on is this viper’s nest of fighting over assets, cash flow and power as the economic pie shrinks in Russia.

“These people are not oligarchs per se, but they’re people who sit in positions that have some kind of authority over important cash flows – particularly in the oil and gas business,’ such as firms Gazprom, Lukoil, Novatek or Gazprombank.

“The sanctions have been devastating for Russia… as a result the pie has been seriously diminished, and a lot of people want to keep their own personal cash flow at the level they had before the war started.