Vladimir Putin is reportedly facing a coup as ‘chaos’ erupts across Moscow, with internet communications blocked in the centre of the Russian capital amid an unconfirmed theory about a plot from followers of security official Sergei Shoigu
Vladimir Putin is reportedly confronting a coup as “chaos” breaks out throughout Moscow. The Russian president dreads a possible conspiracy from supporters of his most senior security council official Sergei Shoigu, according to an extraordinary account circulating Moscow.
This worry has supposedly prompted the dictator’s regime to paralyse the internet in central Moscow, particularly around crucial security and military installations suspected of scheming in an remarkable plot to remove the dictator.
Channel VChK-OGPU, which maintains connections to the secret services, broadcast the unverified theory claiming Shoigu’s faction were conspiring against Putin. Shoigu, 70, had served as defence minister overseeing the war in Ukraine before being dismissed in May 2024 and appointed instead as secretary of the Kremlin’s security council, another influential position.
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Previously close associates, the duo shared holidays together in Siberia – but recently relations became severely tense. A series of Shoigu’s close allies have been purged, detained – and several imprisoned – for corruption and embezzlement.
In the most recent development, former deputy defence minister Ruslan Tsalikov, 69, was detained on suspicion of corruptly accumulating a staggering fortune of almost £50 million in family assets. There’s speculation that Shoigu himself might be the next target for removal and detention – though he’s believed to maintain support within the defence ministry, intelligence services, and across other Russian power networks.
Remarkably, Shoigu hasn’t been spotted or quoted since March 5, coinciding with when mobile communication disruptions began in Moscow, despite expectations he would spearhead Russia’s response to the Middle Eastern crisis.
“The Kremlin fears a coup attempt by Sergei Shoigu’s clan,” claimed VChK-OGPU, outlining this theory.
The outlet described this as appearing “far-fetched” but emphasised: “In addition to the centre [of Moscow], communication is jammed where there are law enforcement facilities or in the residences of law enforcement officers.”
Similar disruptions occurred when former Putin ally Yevgeny Prigozhin mounted his unsuccessful coup attempt in June 2023.
Companies and ordinary Muscovites are furious over persistent internet failures and the blocking of crucial social media platforms like Telegram. Eateries can’t process reservations, whilst one trader raged: “It’s chaos”.
VChK-OGPU quoted a source stating: “The restrictions on cellular communication and the Internet in the centre of the capital and in some areas of Moscow suspiciously coincided with the beginning of investigative activities against the closest people to Shoigu and himself.
“The attempt to send Tsalikov, the ex-Minister of Defence’s closest friend and associate, to Lefortovo [prison] was accompanied by some kind of insane struggle at the top.
“And it ended with the fact that Tsalikov did not go to Lefortovo. Everything ended with accusations and house arrest.
“The next one after Tsalikov could only be Shoigu himself. And he still retains enough influence, both in the highest echelons of power and in the special services, the Ministry of Defence.”
An insider alleged that by a ‘strange coincidence’, the internet and VPN blockade encompassed the Lubyanka headquarters of the FSB security service, the Russian Presidential Administration, the Security Council, and the Moscow-City VIP skyscraper district.
Also affected were special forces units of the Ministry of Defence and the FSB, such as the Alpha and Vympel special forces and the operational staff of the FSB’s Service for the Protection of the Constitutional Order, according to reports.
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