From Russia to red dirt: Nick Stride’s story of espionage and escape from Putin’s one-time deputy

An English tradesman who found himself on the run from the Russian Government and hiding in the Kimberley outback is the subject of a new book by bestselling author and journalist Sue Williams. Run For Your Life tells the story of Nick Stride who, after becoming embroiled with Igor Shuvalov, the one-time deputy Prime Minister to Russian President Vladimir Putin, fled to Australia and leaked secrets to the media. Mr Stride spent more than three years hiding out in the Kimberley’s remote Dampier Peninsula with his wife and two children, fending off crocodiles, sharks, and exposure. It all started when Mr Stride was offered a job working on the British Embassy in 1998 in Moscow, where he eventually met his ex-wife Luda, had two children, Michael and Anya, and became a contractor for Mr Shuvalov. Mr Stride describes the man as a mobster who was always immaculately dressed, and surrounded by security guards. “He didn’t really say much,” Mr Stride said. “In Russia, when you’re in a high position, you don’t really talk to people below you. He was always dressed immaculately and always had his bodyguards around him. “Initially it was a pretty awesome job to be going to work for the Deputy Prime Minister of Russia. It was very prestigious and it was quite a complex project. “But as the job got on to its third year, he got a bit anxious that I knew too much about his financial dealings and that at some point, I’ll be going back to the UK with information I probably shouldn’t have. “He was refusing my wife Luda to leave the country, and that’s when we knew we really were in trouble. “Going back to London wasn’t really an option, because he had property in England, and Russian money in London is well documented. “The furthest place away from danger for us was going to be Australia, the other side of the planet. And as a place I’ve been to before, it just seemed that (was) the best option for my family at that time.” But after arriving in Australia, Mr Stride found himself not only on the run from Russian henchmen, but also from Australian immigration authorities. “We landed in Brisbane and got a six-month visitor’s visa, and when that ran out we found ourselves in Perth and handed ourselves in to Home Affairs,” he said. Immigration was determined to split the family up, sending Luda back to Russia and Mr Stride back to England. All the while, the Stride family were receiving threatening phone calls from Russian pursuers. “We just never fit in the box. It was so unusual for UK citizens to be claiming political asylum, and they just couldn’t resolve our case,” Mr Stride said. Meanwhile, he also got into contact with American journalist Michael Weiss and provided information on Mr Shuvalov’s alleged use of tax havens and offshore accounts to hide his wealth, which put the family in even more danger. At this point, Mr Stride said he decided to disappear into the outback to avoid retaliation from the Russians and the pursuit of Australian immigration authorities. “We had to try and find the remotest place in Australia, and we knew the Kimberley was about as remote as you’re gonna get on the planet,” he said. Heading off to the Kimberley, Mr Stride said immigration authorities did not follow them, and from then on, they were left to their own devices. Surviving on cash work and the good nature of the Kimberley community, the Stride family spent nearly three years battling crocodiles, snakes mosquitoes, the heat, and all the other critters that cover the Kimberley landscape. But as time wore on, the Strides found themselves far from civilisation and starving on an isolated beach on the remote Dampier Peninsula. “We were living on a beach and we had absolutely nothing. We were at death’s door, and that’s when I emailed immigration to come and get us, but they never responded,” Mr Stride said. “We spent five months living on that beach. I lost so much weight it was incredible. “Our only means of getting off that beach was our old HiLux, and if that car broke down, we would have died on that beach.” Eventually the family escaped the harshness of the peninsula, but the ordeal had taken its toll on the couple’s marriage resulting in a split. They have been estranged ever since. After years of separation and navigating the Australian immigration system, the family were finally able to find a new home in New Zealand, where they still live. Mr Stride said part of his impetus for going public with his story was protection, as the Russians were less likely to go after someone who was a public figure. “The worst thing you can be is a nobody, because when you’re a nobody, you can just disappear,” he said. Despite the danger Mr Stride has faced and the ordeals he and his family survived out on the Dampier Peninsula, he said he had no regrets.