Was 'Russian spy' whale Hvaldimir assassinated? What investigation revealed

As the mystery over the death of the celebrated white beluga whale also known as 'Russian spy' continued, the Norway police finally said that its death was not related to human activity.

The beluga, nicknamed Hvaldimir, rose to fame in 2019 after being spotted with a harness strapped around its neck in Norwegian waters five years ago. This had led to the rumours that it may have been trained by the Russian military. Since then it was nicknamed Hvaldimir - a combination of the Norwegian word for whale and the first name of Russian president Vladimir Putin.

Norway and Russia share a maritime border in the Arctic.

The whale was found dead on August 31 and spotted by a father and son fishing in southern Norway.

After an outcry by animal rights groups that speculated if it was actually assassinated, the Norwegian police opened an investigation.

Now the autopsy has revealed that a stick measuring 35 cm in length (14 in) and 3 cm wide (1.2 in) was stuck in the whale's mouth, reported Reuters.

"The autopsy showed that its stomach was empty. In addition, most organs had broken down," police said.

"There is nothing in the investigations that have been carried out to establish that it is human activity that has directly led to Hvaldimir's death."

As a result, police would not investigate further, they added.

According to CNN, before Hvaldimir’s death, the two animal rights organisations, OneWhale and NOAH, had been collaborating to relocate him to a safer area in northern Norway, and had obtained permits from the Norwegian Directorate of Fisheries.

In 2019, CNN received information from specialists indicating that Hvaldimir was not a wild animal but had undergone training. The evidence pointed towards Russia as the whale's origin.

According to Jorgen Ree Wiig, a marine biologist working for the Norwegian Directorate of Fisheries, the harness worn by Hvaldimir seemed to be "specially made" and featured "mounts for GoPro cameras on each side of it."

The fact that the harness clips bore the inscription "Equipment St. Petersburg" further supported the widely held belief that Hvaldimir originated from Murmansk, Russia, and had been trained by the Russian naval forces.