The limousine belongs to Putin’s Presidential Property Management Department, though whether the Russian dictator personally used this exact vehicle remains unconfirmed.
Social media is abuzz with viral footage showing one of Russian President Vladimir Putin’s presidential limousines consumed by fire near intelligence headquarters in Moscow.
Eyewitnesses filmed thick black smoke pouring from a $350,000 Aurus Senat luxury vehicle on Saturday, with one clip alone garnering 1.7 million views. Nearby workers helped put out the fire, which likely began in the car’s engine bay and spread to the interior.
According to German outlet Bild, the limousine belongs to Putin’s Presidential Property Management Department, though whether the Russian dictator personally used this exact vehicle remains unconfirmed. Kremlin officials have remained silent, but a comprehensive security review has been ordered, particularly focusing on sewers near where the vehicle burned.
Normally, Putin’s motorcade involves heavily armored convoys surrounded by military special forces carrying AK-47s, anti-tank grenade launchers and anti-aircraft missiles. But security protocols around him have visibly tightened following December’s Ukrainian assassination of Lieutenant General Igor Kirillov, who was responsible for Russia’s chemical and biological weapons programs. During Putin’s state visit to Murmansk on Friday, ceremonial guards underwent unprecedented weapons searches before official ceremonies.
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