Shafaq News / A secret plot to oust Russian President Vladimir Putin could already be underway within his inner circle, according to a CIA insider.

Putin's cronies could already be lurking in the wings if Russia's invasion of Ukraine fails, with concerns and speculation mounting over the president's health.

Sergei Shoigu, Russian Defence Minister and a close Putin-ally, may be central to a mutiny to overthrow the president, according to ex-CIA Moscow station chief Daniel Hoffman.

He added that if anyone is going to overthrow Putin then it'll be done in secret so that he doesn't find them and kill them first.

“Nobody’s gonna ask, ‘Hey Vladimir, would you like to leave?’ No. It’s a f***ing hammer to the head and he’s dead. Or it’s time to go to the sanatorium,” Hoffman told The Daily Beast.

“They schwack him for it. That’s what they’ll do.”

(Mirror)