A group of anti-Kremlin hackers stole a database of people stored in Russia containing hundreds of thousands of names after the death of Alexei Navalny, hoping that it could be used to obtain more information about how the Russian dissident died, writes The Kyiv Independent with reference to CNN.

The hacker group claims that the document contains email addresses and phone numbers of detainees and their relatives in the Arctic colony, where a Russian opposition leader died on February 16.

The hackers told CNN that they provided the data “in the hope that someone can contact them and help find out what happened to Navalny.”

They also claim to have visited an online store where families can buy groceries for their imprisoned relatives at prices as low as one ruble.

Navalny, the main political opponent of Putin, died on February 16 in the colony of the Russian city of Harp.

The Council of the European Union imposed sanctions on 33 people and two organizations over his death, and the EU’s top diplomat, Josep Borrell, said the “slow killing” of Navalny by the “Kremlin regime” was a “cruel reminder of (the regime’s) utter disregard for human life”.

World leaders have blamed Putin for Navalny’s death. It remains unclear whether his death was caused by the harsh conditions of imprisonment or whether he was killed on purpose, The Kyiv Independent notes.

Read also:

• Russian dissident Oleksii Navalny would have been killed by the KGB method, the activist believes
• The head of Russian intelligence says that Navalny died of natural causes: “People have a peculiarity: they die”
• How two independent Russian journalists experienced Navalny’s funeral: “People came to talk on camera, wanted to expose themselves”