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Russia’s Prosecutors Received Britain’s Inquiry re: Litvinenko Case
Russia’s Prosecutor General Office has received an additional inquiry from Great Britain related to the Litvinenko case, the web-site of the prosecutors reported Tuesday.
Once the spy of FSB, Alexander Litvinenko fled to Britain in 2000 and died of polonium poisoning in London November 23, 2006. Although no official conclusion of the cause of his death has been ever released, the Crown Prosecutors have accused Russia’s businessman Andrei Lugovoy of involvement and demanded his extradition.
In response to additional inquiry of Britain, Russia’s prosecutors sent a letter to the Secretary of State for Home Affairs of the United Kingdom and Northern Island, confirming the receipt of the document. At the same time, they specified that “the General Prosecutor Office of the Russian Federation will receive English colleagues and arrange consideration of the issue on its merits” no sooner than the planned scope of work is executed in Great Britain.
According to Russia’s prosecutors, they submitted their inquiries related to Litvinenko’s case to the competent bodies of the United Kingdom much earlier, ten months ago, seeking, under the European Convention on Mutual Assistance in Criminal Matters of 1959, some legal aid in investigating the murder of Alexander Litvinenko and attempted murder of Dmitry Kovtun.
Britain has never responded to those inquiries despite that Russia has specified their particular expediency.
Of 18 persons, whom Russia’s prosecutors requested to interrogate, only four have been actually questioned. No investigative actions have been carried out involving the doctors that treated Litvinenko and dissected his body in Barnet Hospital and in the University College Hospital. Moreover, no copies of dissection reports, of tests’ results or conclusion of forensic and medical examination have been ever forwarded to Russia.
www.kommersant.com
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Photo: Sergey Mikheev
