Germany launches investigation after reports of possible poisoning of Russian activist and journalist in Berlin

The Berlin Criminal Police Department has launched an investigation into the alleged poisoning of two participants in a conference of Russian opposition figures that Mikhail Khodorkovsky organized in the German capital at the end of April 2023.

The police announced the start of an investigation in response to a corresponding request from the German publication Welt Am Sonntag. The department did not disclose details about the progress of the investigation or the persons involved.

On May 16, the Russian publication Agency reported that the head of the Free Russia Foundation, Natalia Arno, and one of the Russian journalists who recently left their homeland complained of symptoms of poisoning and health problems. Both of them took part in the Berlin opposition conference.

At the same time, the journalist, whose name the Agency did not disclose, reported that her symptoms “may have appeared even before the conference.” She refused to talk about their nature and subsequent treatment.

In its article, the publication linked these events with the alleged poisoning of former US Ambassador to Ukraine John Herbst and the break-in into the hotel room of Bellingcat investigator Christo Grozev, suggesting that they involved people who may be connected to Russian intelligence services.