Putin’s puppet governor in Ukraine ‘poisoned by a chef’ and flown to Moscow in a coma weeks after ‘bomb plot foiled’

A PUPPET governor of a Putin-occupied Ukrainian city has been rushed to hospital after a suspected poisoning. Kherson chief Vladimir Saldo has been hit with a second assasination attempt less than a month after previously surviving a bomb-plot. TwitterVladimir Saldo has been placed in a coma after a suspected poisoning[/caption] East2WestHe previously served as mayor of Kherson between 2002 and 2012, but has since backed Putin’s brutal invasion[/caption] Saldo was poisoned after a chef was brought into his home to cook for the Kremlin crony, Russian opposition media has reported. The latest attempt on his life came as the Putin-appointed Mayor of Kherson was targeted amid a Ukrainian fight-back in the city. After eating food prepared by the chef, Saldo reportedly “became ill, his mind began to cloud and his fingertips went numb”. He was rushed to hospital in Simferopol, Crimea, 170 miles south of Kherson, where Ukrainian forces have been attempting to launch an offensive against Russian occupiers. Read More in The Sun RED ALERT Chinese nuke bombers fly ‘mock strike run' in prep for 'real mission' on Taiwan 'IT WAS LIKE JAWS' Terrified Brit boy, 8, savaged by sharks on holiday in the Bahamas The mayor was placed in a coma and flown to Moscow, where he is now fighting for his life on a ventilator. Regional officials have denied he has been poisoned, but doctors are still awaiting his toxicology reports. Saldo’s deputy in Kherson, Kirill Stremousov, said: “Five months non-stop under bullets and Grads. The man was simply overtired. “The diagnosis is fatigue.” The poisoning comes less than a month since Russian-appointed officials in Kherson claimed that they had prevented a bomb-plot intended for Saldo. Most read in News BLAZE ALERT ‘Loud explosion’ near Heathrow as crews battle to save 30 homes from huge fire 'NOTHING DIGNIFIED' Archie Battersbee's family slam hospital after his 'barbaric' death 'HEART IS BROKEN' Tributes to popular dad, 58, killed at family holiday park as 6 arrested LAKE TRAGEDY Girl, 11, drowns at waterpark after vanishing 'during friend’s birthday party’ ROYAL CASH I thought Andrew was going to prison & Fergie was broke - they owed me MILLIONS BAKE OFF 10-day heatwave starts today with 28C scorcher but minister calls for hosepipe ban Russian state-run news agency RIA Novosti cited the officials as saying that a bomb was placed on a road waiting for Saldo to drive through. But the explosive was “discovered and defused” in time before the Putin-crony got to it. He previously served as mayor of Kherson between 2002 and 2012, and had claimed just weeks into Putin’s invasion that “Kherson is Ukraine”. But less than a month later he was installed as head of the city under Russian rule, and has since backed Putin’s brutal invasion. Saldo was placed as the puppet-mayor of Kherson after Russian forces blew through the city in February, becoming the first Ukrainian area to be taken by Moscow. Kherson, around 280 miles from capital city Kyiv, has been under Russian control since the beginning of the invasion. But Saldo’s reign over the city has seen brave Kherson residents protest through the streets in defiance of the Kremlin assault. APPeople hold Ukrainian flags and a banner that reads ‘Kherson is Ukraine’ during a rally against Russian occupation in the city[/caption] Peter JordanSun man Jerome Starkey joined a group of fighters called Dark Angels on the front line of the Kherson Oblast region[/caption]