Litvinenko Investigation Widens To Russia, U.S.

Litvinenko Investigation Widens To Russia, U.S.

PRAGUE, December 4, 2006 -- British investigators are set to travel to Moscow to search for clues to the apparent murder of former Russian intelligence officer Aleksandr Litvinenko. The case has also led a second police contingent to the United States.

Britain's Foreign Ministry says investigators have received visas to visit Moscow and are set to travel as early as today.

Reports say once in Moscow, the police officials plan to interview three men who may have information about Litvinenko, who died November 23 after ingesting the rare radioactive isotope polonium-210.

The men -- Andrei Lugovoi, Dmitry Kovtun, and Vyacheslav Sokolenko -- met with Litvinenko in a London hotel on November 1, the day he fell ill. All three have protested their innocence, and say they are being framed.

Official Cooperation

British Home Secretary John Reid, speaking ahead of an EU interior ministers meeting in Brussels, says he is confident of Moscow's assistance in the case.

"The British police will be going to Russia to continue their inquiries and will continue to go wherever the evidence leads," Reid said. "This investigation will proceed as normal, whatever the diplomatic or whatever the wider considerations."

Newspaper reports say a separate contingent of Scotland Yard investigators was in the United States last week to question a former KGB agent with ties to both Litvinenko and Litvinenko's London ally, exiled Russian billionaire Boris Berezovsky.

The man, Yury Shvets, told the Associated Press he had given the British officers the name of the person he believes is behind Litvinenko's death. He declined to elaborate.

Following Trails

The widening investigation follows revelations last week that radioactive traces had been found on airplanes that traveled between London and Moscow, as well as to a dozen other European cities during the month of November.

A fourth man who met Livtinenko on the day of his apparent poisoning has also been found to have ingested a significant amount of polonium-210.

Mario Scaramella, an Italian academic and security consultant, is currently in London's University College Hospital. He claims to have "five times" the deadly dose of the radioactive substance in his body, although doctors say he remains well.

British officials have raced to counter growing public fear as traces of radioactivity have been detected in a dozen London locations and on board aircraft.

Home Secretary Reid today tried to assuage EU concerns about public safety, saying, "I'm very glad to have the opportunity to be here to inform my European colleagues of developments on the case of Mr. Litvinenko and hopefully to reassure them as well so that they're aware that any health threat is absolutely minimal."

No Easy Answers

Investigators appear no closer to resolving the Litvinenko case. In the absence of a clear resolution, multiple theories have developed to explain what may be behind the mysterious death of the former security-service agent.

Litvinenko's friends and family say his death was a vendetta carried out by the Kremlin.

The 43-year-old Litvinenko had lived in England since 2000, and was a fierce critic of the Russian government. He had accused the Kremlin of involvement in a number of terrorist-style bombings, assassinations, and murder attempts.

Litvinenko wrote a deathbed letter claiming his poisoning was the work of Russian President Vladimir Putin, whom he described as "barbaric and ruthless."

Russia Defiant

Putin has reportedly criticized the British government for allowing the contents of the letter to be made public. He has denied any Kremlin involvement in Litvinenko's death, saying the plot is the work of anti-Russian forces in the West.

Russian officials have also criticized British authorities for refusing to reveal the results of Litvinenko's autopsy, conducted on December 1. The findings are expected this week.

The date of Litvinenko's funeral has also not been disclosed. Friends say the casket will be sealed to prevent the spread of radiation.

Litvinenko's father says his son requested before his death that he be buried according to Muslim tradition. Chechen separatist websites had reported earlier that Litvinenko had converted to Islam.

But his father, Walter, in an interview today with the Russian daily "Kommersant," did not confirm that.

(compiled from agency reports)

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Litvinenko Investigation Widens To Russia, U.S.