- Bill Browder, Vladimir Putin's nemesis, said the Russian president has been mentally ill.
- In a new documentary on Paramount+, Browder said Putin has been ill as a "psychopath."
- There have been rumors about Putin's health – an oligarch was recorded saying he had blood cancer.
Vladimir Putin's nemesis, investor Bill Browder, says the Russian president has been ill since childhood, but not in the way many think.
In a new documentary called, "Secrets of the Oligarch Wives," which will stream on Paramount+ starting June 28, Browder said Putin has been ill and is a "psychopath." The wives of Russian billionaires paint a picture of a vengeful Russian leader who saw treachery at every turn, forgave nothing, settled every score and was jealous of their lifestyles.
Insider viewed the documentary ahead of its streaming debut. It starts with 2010 footage of Putin singing in front of Western celebrities in St Petersburg.
Browder is an international investor who once ran the largest foreign investment fund in Russia. He was barred in 2005 from entering the country, "blacklisted," and named a "threat to national security" after he accused Russian tax officials of corruption and embezzlement.
Browder says in the documentary: "Putin is ill, but not in the way that most people think Putin is ill. Putin is mentally ill, but he has been mentally ill as a psychopath since childhood."
"Putin's illness leads him to lack any empathy, lack any conscience, lack any normal human emotions when it comes to the fate of other people," Browder adds.
There have been speculations about the Russian president's health. An oligarch secretly was recorded saying Putin had "blood cancer" and Oliver Stone, who made a four-part documentary on Putin, also said he had cancer but had "licked it."
Putin appeared to be limping and sat a blanket over his lap during his public appearance on Victory Day in early May. Videos also emerged showing him tightly gripping a table and appearing to shake uncontrollably.
Browder concluded that being a psychopath "will lead him to all sorts of terrible crimes."
Tatiana Fokina, whose partner Evgeny Chichvarkin was once worth over $1.5 billion, says in the documentary that the rumors of Putin's health are "likely to be true," and if they are "that makes me really frightened."
"A person who is really ill doesn't really care about what happens next," Fokina added.