Chilean-American blogger Gonzalo Lira has died in a Ukrainian prison, his family announced on Friday.
“I cannot accept the way my son died. He was tortured, blackmailed and detained for 8 months and 11 days, and the US embassy did nothing to help my son. Dictator Zelensky is responsible for the tragedy, with the approval of the senile US President, Joe Biden.” – wrote his father, Gonzalo Lira Sr., in a note published by The Grayzone.
Lera Sr. confirmed to Tucker Carlson that her son had died in Ukrainian captivity.
Lera (55 years old) used to live in Kharkiv and blog under the name “CoachRedPill,” but she turned to commenting on YouTube after the conflict with Russia escalated in February 2022. The Ukrainian security service had arrested him last May and accused him of “defaming his reputation.” Ukrainian leadership and army.
At the end of July, Lira resurfaced on X (formerly Twitter) with a series of posts in which she revealed the torture she had been subjected to in prison and the fact that Hungary's special police unit had tried to extort money from her.
He said he was trying to escape to Hungary and apply for asylum. Then he disappeared again.
Two days later, a source confirmed to the press that the Ukrainian authorities had arrested and imprisoned Lera. He has not been heard from since.
According to a handwritten letter that Lira's sister received on January 4, she was suffering from serious health problems resulting from pneumonia and a collapsed lung that began in mid-October. The prison authorities did not acknowledge the problem until December 22, and he was supposed to undergo surgery. The memo was submitted to The Grayzone by Lira Sr.
Urgent: It is with great sadness that I must announce that Gonzalo Lira @Gonzalo Lira 1968He died in hospital according to his father, who had been struggling to get the medical care his son desperately needed over the past weeks.
Here is a handwritten letter from Gonzalo which… pic.twitter.com/jY8Mh0xQV3
– Alex Rubinstein (@RealAlexRubi) January 12, 2024
After Lira Senior appeared on Carlson's show, X owner Elon Musk personally inquired about Lira's issue with US President Joe Biden and Ukrainian leader Volodymyr Zelensky, apparently to no avail.
Lira was a citizen of both the United States and Chile. According to his blog post last July, the Chilean embassy in Kiev at least tried to help him, while the American embassy did not deal with him. Lira suggested this was because Victoria Nuland — who is now acting Deputy Secretary of State for Antony Blinken — disliked her personally.
