Translated material
Scotland Yard is losing patience
British investigators fear that the “Litvinenko case” has reached a dead end
The murder case of Alexander Litvinenko may be closed. The London Sunday Times reported this yesterday. According to the publication, Scotland Yard officers investigating the circumstances of the death of a former FSB officer told his wife that the murder suspects would probably be able to avoid trial .True, all these are still rumors that have not been confirmed by any official authorities. Neither Scotland Yard nor the Crown Prosecution Service, where the results of the investigation are due, have yet uttered a word on this matter. However, well-informed London newspapers, citing “sources close to the investigation,” are unanimous in their opinion that the matter has reached a dead end.
The problem is not that there are not sufficient grounds to arrest the suspects and bring the case to trial. The point is that the defendants in the case are in Russia and there is no chance of their extradition.
Apparently, the main suspect is former FSB officer Andrei Lugovoi, who, according to British media, has traces of polonium-210, with the help of which Alexander Litvinenko was killed . There is reason to believe that along with Lugovoy, his friend and colleague Dmitry Kovtun would also have to face trial.
By the way, just on Saturday it became known that in the bar of the Millennium Hotel, where Lugovoy and Kovtun met with Litvinenko on November 1, polonium was poured not into a cup of tea, but into a teapot. This kettle “received” such a wild dose of radiation that the counters brought to it are still going off scale. Alexander Litvinenko's wife Marina said that her husband later complained that the tea in the bar was “cold and tasteless.”
British media quote in detail Lugovoy himself, who insists on his innocence. Particularly interesting is his last statement: “This is all lies, provocation and government propaganda... They are just trying to cover up bad work.” The reference to “government propaganda” seems a bit of a stretch in the UK, as officials have never mentioned his name at all in connection with the Litvinenko case.
Meanwhile, as one of the employees of the Royal Prosecutor's Office told Vremya Novostey, “so far his statements have no value. If specific charges are brought against Lugovoy and his accomplices, they will have to be refuted in court. Only a court can find the accused innocent.”
According to the BBC, the police are still investigating, and the investigation materials have not yet been sent to the prosecutor's office. If the prosecutor's office finds them convincing, it will decide to file charges and, accordingly, to request extradition.
But, according to the same employee of the prosecutor’s office, “all attempts to extradite Lugovoy will rest against the Russian Constitution, which guarantees protection to its citizens from forced expulsion from the country.” “As a result, Russia may face a very unpleasant choice,” he believes, “if the suspects are not handed over to British justice, then the world community may form the opinion that Moscow is involved in Litvinenko’s death. Such a conclusion could cause serious harm to Russia’s international image.”