British Police Probe Ex-Spy's Death

[Said1]

The Russians are certainly getting predictable.

Anti-terrorist police investigating the death by radioactive poison of a former Soviet spy probed theories ranging from a Kremlin plot to a case of self-poisoning as health authorities prepared Sunday to test scores of people for traces of radiation.

Opposition politicians, meanwhile, pressed for a British government statement on Alexander Litvinenko's death by poisoning, which officials have called "unprecedented."

"It is essential that other dissidents living in Britain are reassured about their safety and there are also questions about how polonium-210 came to be used in Britain," said David Davis, the Conservative law-and-order spokesman.

Litvinenko - a former KGB agent who was a fierce critic of Russian President Vladimir Putin - died Thursday of heart failure after falling gravely ill from what doctors said was poisoning by the radioactive element polonium-210.

Litvinenko, 43, told police he believed he was poisoned Nov. 1 while investigating the October slaying of Russian journalist Anna Politkovskaya, another critic of Putin's government. He was moved to intensive care last week after his hair fell out, his throat became swollen and his immune and nervous systems suffered severe damage.

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[akiboy]

Its pretty obvious. Moscow is certainly behind this. I mean ...the KGB was one of the prime intell. agencies to kill via radioactive poisoning. And that too , doctors have found polonium in the man's urine. Now , the Brits are all getting jumpy about this as such a dangerous element (polonium ) could have been accessed only from a high security nuclear lab. You wouldn't expect to buy it from Harrods!

Akshay

 

[waltky]

Litvinenko inquest close to collapse...

UK Litvinenko inquest in doubt
Sun, May 19, 2013 - The inquest into the death in Britain of Russian dissident Alexander Litvinenko was close to collapse yesterday after the coroner ruled he could not hear evidence about the alleged role of the Kremlin in his poisoning.

Litvinenko’s widow Marina said she was “utterly dismayed” by the decision. She accused Britain of making a deal with Moscow to improve relations chilled by the murder of her husband, who once worked as a spy for Russia. Coroner Robert Owen announced his decision in a pre-hearing ruling on Friday following an application by Britain’s foreign ministry to keep the information concerning Russia secret. However, Owen said he would be failing in his duty “to undertake a full, fair and fearless inquiry into the circumstances of Mr Litvinenko’s death” if he was forced to disregard the evidence for national security reasons. He suggested that the death could instead be considered in a public inquiry in which the evidence alleging Russian state involvement “could be taken into account.”

Under English law, evidence cannot be heard in secret as part of an inquest, but can be presented behind closed doors as part of a public inquiry. The coroner said he now wanted to hear submissions from Marina Litvinenko and the couple’s son on the possibility of holding an inquiry, parts of which would have to take place behind closed doors. Litvinenko died after he was poisoned with radioactive polonium-210 slipped into his tea in 2006. Marina Litvinenko’s solicitors said it was a “very sad day for British justice.” Their statement went on: “The effect of today’s ruling is to protect those responsible for ordering the murder of a British citizen on the streets of London, and to allow the Russian government to shield behind a claim for secrecy made by [British Foreign Secretary] William Hague with the backing of the Prime Minister David Cameron.”

She said it was a “frightening precedent” for people trying to hold to account the “conspiracy of organised criminals that operate from the Kremlin.” There was no immediate reaction from Russia. Hague has sought to prevent information regarding the death from being revealed during the inquest, which is due to start later this year. The coroner said he partly agreed with Hague’s request. It is thought Litvinenko was working for British intelligence at the time of his death and his family believe he was killed on the orders of the Kremlin. British police have sought the arrest of two Russian nationals in relation to the death — Andrei Lugovoi and Dmitri Kovtun — but Moscow has refused to hand them over.

The Litvinenko case plunged relations between Russia and Britain into a deep freeze from which they have only recently emerged. Alex Goldfarb, a friend of the Litvinenko family, said the coroner’s decision was “deeply dismaying.” “It appears the British government is more concerned about the use of chemical weapons in Syria than radioactive weapons being used on the streets of London,” he said. “On the other hand, it’s an admission by the British government that the Russian state is culpable because otherwise they would not have requested immunity,” he said. “That in itself is a partial victory for Marina.”

UK Litvinenko inquest in doubt - Taipei Times

 

[Beria]

Dept 5 !