Putin hit claims were leaked to ‘manipulate’ the press

Claims that Vladimir Putin ordered the assassination of a Russian whistleblower may have been deliberately leaked to ‘manipulate’ the press, the Old Bailey heard today (Weds). Alexander Perepilichnyy, 44, collapsed and died while running up a steep hill in his £3million St George’s Hill estate in Weybridge, Surrey, on 10 November 2012. A paramedic said the father-of-two’s death looked like a ‘textbook cardiac arrest’ – but claims have since emerged that he was murdered after helping Hermitage Capital Management uncover…