Glenn Corn, a former CIA officer, told News Outlet that Russia’s long record of misleading the public makes the Kremlin’s explanation difficult to accept amid concern over a potential disease outbreak following the death of a 28-year-old researcher who worked at a facility holding dangerous pathogens.
Darya Shipilova was employed by the Irkutsk Anti-Plague Research Institute of Siberia and the Far East. She became ill in late September.
Unverified claims circulated widely on social media that Shipilova had died from pneumonic plague. Russian officials rejected those reports, saying she died Oct. 2 from “pneumonia of unknown etiology.” Authorities also said tests detected no evidence that she had contracted a pathogen from the laboratory.
Still, Russia’s history of concealing or reshaping information during major crises has fueled skepticism about the official version of events.
Glenn Corn attends a discussion organized by the Kyiv Security Forum in Kyiv, Ukraine, on April 3, 2026. (Yuliia Ovsiannikova/Ukrinform/Future Publishing via Getty Images)
“The challenge is that they have the history of the ‘boy who cried wolf’ syndrome,” said Corn, a professor at the Institute of World Politics, a Washington, D.C., graduate school. “They have this history of being deceitful. It’s very hard to believe what they’re saying.”
Corn, who speaks fluent Russian and spent more than two decades abroad during his intelligence career, cited several alleged Russian coverups. Among them was the 1979 anthrax outbreak in the Soviet city of Sverdlovsk, now Yekaterinburg, which killed at least 64 people.
According to PBS’ “Frontline,” Soviet officials initially blamed the deaths on intestinal anthrax caused by contaminated meat. The explanation stood for years, until President Boris Yeltsin acknowledged in 1992 that the outbreak had been connected to military work at a nearby biological weapons facility.
Corn said that pattern of secrecy and deception did not disappear with the Soviet Union and remains evident under President Vladimir Putin’s government.
Darya Shipilova, 28, an employee of the Irkutsk Anti-Plague Research Institute of Siberia and the Far East, died after developing pneumonia of an unknown cause, prompting quarantines and heightened health precautions in the region. Russian authorities say testing has found no evidence her illness was linked to pathogens she worked with. (East2West news)
Corn also pointed to the Kremlin’s long-denied connection to the Wagner mercenary group. The arrangement enabled Wagner fighters to pursue Russian interests abroad while officials retained plausible deniability. Putin later admitted that the Russian state had fully funded the group.
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“This goes to the strategic culture of leadership in Russia … and their fear of the rest of the world, and their belief that they have to deceive everybody because everybody is deceiving them,” Corn said.
Corn said similar control over public narratives can be seen in China, which remains governed by the Communist Party. He argued that today’s Russian state also retains many institutions and practices inherited from the Soviet system.
China, for instance, faced international criticism during the early months of the COVID-19 pandemic over accusations that officials withheld or delayed key information about the emerging virus. The disease has since been linked to more than 7 million deaths worldwide.
Workers in protective uniforms conduct testing in Russia amid heightened precautions following the death of an employee at a Siberian anti-plague research institute. (Khuvsguliinungu.mn/e2w)
“In both systems, people are disincentivized to tell the truth when there’s a bad story,” Corn said. “Nobody wants to actually say that we have a real problem and we need to deal with it because they’re afraid that it will cost them their jobs, their lives, their freedom.”
Given that history, Corn said U.S. officials should avoid relying solely on Moscow’s statements about Shipilova’s death. Instead, he urged them to verify the claims independently and watch closely for evidence of a broader outbreak.
At present, there is no indication that Shipilova’s illness has spread. Russia’s health watchdog said Tuesday that 60% of approximately 200 people placed under quarantine after possible contact with her had been released. The agency also reported that no plague cases had been identified.
Russia’s President Vladimir Putin chairs a Security Council meeting via videolink in Moscow on Oct. 7, 2026. (Vyacheslav Prokofyev/Pool/AFP via Getty Images)
The World Health Organization said Tuesday that the incident posed a “very low” risk beyond Russia, according to The Associated Press.
That same day, WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said on social media that the global health agency is in contact with Russian health authorities and has requested more information “to clarify the cause of the severe pneumonia” that killed Shipilova.
President Donald Trump also told reporters on Tuesday that he has a call scheduled with Putin about the case “very soon,” adding that the U.S. is already in “very deep discussions” with Russia.
