Spy killed by $US10m worth of polonium

The Australian ^ | 18 Decenber 2996 | Daniel McGrory and Tony Halpin

[shrinkermd]

BRITISH investigators believe that Alexander Litvinenko's killers used more than $US10 million of polonium-210 to poison him. Preliminary findings from the post mortem examination on the former KGB spy suggest that he was given more than ten times the lethal dose.

Police do not know why the assassins used so much of the polonium-210, and are investigating whether the poison was part of a consignment to be sold on the black market.

They believe that whoever orchestrated the plot knew of its effects, but are unsure whether the massive amount was used to send a message - it made it easier for British scientists to detect - or is evidence of a clumsy operation.

A British security source said yesterday: "You can't buy this much off the internet or steal it from a laboratory without raising an alarm so the only two plausible explanations for the source are that it was obtained from a nuclear reactor or very well connected black market smugglers."

[RusIvan]

"..A pure disaster, and the British detectives knew what they were in for when they went. They had to, so to speak, ‘give evidence’ of their respect, they were to come and take a look, and just enter it into the record, because neither Kovtun nor Lugovoy… no one was presented to them in the proper way. The British detectives sat there, they realized this was purely a pathetic show the Russians were putting on. The British are not fools, they knew that the Russians have never collaborated honestly with the British in juridical questions. .."

Yeah? They wanted to get "free hand" on teh russian territory? I do not remember that British themseves gave such "free hands" when Russia investigated Berezovskii and Zakaev. Quite opposite if we all remember.
Russian investigators did whatever they can. They accepted british dedectives on thier interrogations and allowed them to ask questions. But forgive us Russia didn't allow british dedectives to has the authority in Moscow. Poor us:).

[anymouse]

FR Thead: ABC News Exclusive: Murder in a Teapot British officials say police have cracked the murder-by-poison case of former spy Alexander Litvinenko, including the discovery of a "hot" teapot at London's Millennium Hotel with an off-the-charts reading for Polonium-210, the radioactive material used in the killing.