Dec 15 2006

Lugovoi Definitely Berezovsky Ally

I was going to add this in a long line of comments to answer someone’s question, and decided to make a post for everyone to find. Lugovoi was definitely an ally of Berezovsky’s – so the assassination theory seems a little more stretched than it was before. And it explains why Goldfarb first tried to divert suspicion from Lugovoi. Now that Lugovoi is a participating witness (prossibly under a plea agreement) Berezvosky’s mouth piece is having to change tactics. Looks like everyman is now out for themselves in a battle that could put someone away for life. I am wondering more and more whether the Litvinenko incident and the spat of killings is really the preparation for some kind of coup d’etat in Russia.

248 responses so far

248 Responses to “Lugovoi Definitely Berezovsky Ally”

  1. crosspatch says:

    But a nagging problem is the fact that Boris Berezovsky is connected to everyone involved here. If Boris were involed in a smuggling ring of polonium, I would be very interested to know where it was going given his past history of arming Chechens.

  2. crosspatch says:

    “someone who knew too much and might be tempted to blab.”

    If you want to shut someone up, you don’t do it with a poison that takes three weeks to kill them.

  3. likbez says:

    Crosspath,

    “He decides to have Litinenko wacked with polonium making it look like the Russians did it.”

    Looks plausible. But to accomplish this you do not call somebody in Moscow and tell him to fly to London with polonium, right ?

    It’s better to put Litvinenko in difficult financial position, navigate him to smuggling and then use a side effect of smuggling as a PR opportunity.

  4. crosspatch says:

    No, you do it in the course of your regular smuggling operation with the final shipment. Maybe that is why Litivineko went to Boris’ office, for payment having finished the job. I don’t think they counted on Lugovoi and Kovtun being so contaminated.

  5. crosspatch says:

    And Goldfarb tossing Kovtun under a bus like he seems to be doing has a funny smell to it. It is also how Goldfarb, in the article, is presented as “a friend of Litvinenko’s” rather than a another Boris Berezovsky employee.

  6. likbez says:

    Crosspath,

    “I don’t think they counted on Lugovoi and Kovtun being so contaminated. ”

    It looks like Lugovoy is not contaminated:

    http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/national/1103AP_Poisoned_Spy.html

  7. crosspatch says:

    He may not be poisoned, but he was contaminated. His airplane seats and hotel rooms show contamination on all three trips going back to October 16.

  8. crosspatch says:

    He also said his home and office were both contaminated.

  9. crosspatch says:

    From that link you gave:

    Lugovoi said he was undergoing tests at a Moscow clinic. Media reports have said Lugovoi was being checked for radiation.

    A business partner, Dmitry Kovtun, who was also present at the Nov. 1 meeting with Litvinenko at London’s Mayfair Millennium Hotel, was also contaminated by a radioactive substance, according to Russian officials.

    The word “also” being important in that sentance.

  10. Enlightened says:

    According to “Russian Officials” being even more important –

  11. likbez says:

    Crosspatch,

    “He may not be poisoned, but he was contaminated. His airplane seats and hotel rooms show contamination on all three trips going back to October 16. ”

    Yes I was wrong, sorry about that.

    Another interesting news: MI5 chief quits

    http://www.dailymail.co.uk/pages/live/articles/news/news.html?in_article_id=422970&in_page_id=1770

  12. jerry says:

    I’m begining to think that these hospital stays by Lugovoi and Kovtun are, like the money trail, a way to determine if there is or isn’t a serious story here.

    Just why are they in a hospital, do they have any symptoms (it’s several weeks now that we know they’ve been exposed to Po), why should they remain secluded in a hospital?

    I’d be very interested in any insight a medical doctor could contribute here… it this whole hospital story obviously bogus?

  13. crosspatch says:

    Jerry, radiation can damage the immune system. It takes no time at all to determine if they are contaminated, so that much seems to be certain. But tests to determine the extent of damage can take longer. For example: are their white cell counts normal? If low are the continuing to decrease or are they rebounding? Tests such as those take time because they must be done over a period of time.

    You don’t let people with a compromised immune system have access to a lot of visitors, at leat not until you are sure they are going to die anyway. Alpha radiation can kill bone marrow. If the bown marrow dies, there is really very little that can be done to save you.

    Their being in a hospital so far is consistant with the contamination they might have been exposed to. Don’t worry, Jerry, it won’t last forever.

  14. crosspatch says:

    “According to “Russian Officials” being even more important”

    In what way? I am assuming that the British investigators have verified this to their satisfaction and it would be a simple matter to do so. The British haven’t complained as far as I know.

  15. likbez says:

    Actually about 12 persons were already questioned in Moscow now crimial police ( called Petrovka 38 for the address of the headquaters) rumored to be ready to open its own investigation about smuggling.

    See http://www.gazeta.ru/politics/polonium/1156556.shtml

    You can use Google translate to any russian press page to get a reasonable translation of the page

    http://www.google.com/translate_t

    To view already translated page mentioned above please use:

    http://www.google.com/translate?u=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.gazeta.ru%2Fpolitics%2Fpolonium%2F1156556.shtml&langpair=ru%7Cen&hl=en&ie=UTF8

  16. jerry says:

    But CP, with all respect, neither you nor I are MDs. It there a reason to keep them in a hospital when there is no observable effect on white cell count? If they developed an infection couldn’t they just go back for a follow up? If there is no nausea or hair loss, or any of these other indicators… why be there at all? For all we know this is clearly a charade from the perspective of someone with the appropriate medical experience.

  17. topsecretk9@AJ says:

    Sorry if this a repeat. This thread went from zero to 100 in no time

    A friend of a poisoned Russian spy is calling for the arrest of a key witness in the case.

    The friend tells The Associated Press it’s time to stop treating Dmitry Kovtun as a witness in the mysterious death and start naming him as a suspect. He’s calling on British investigators to issue an arrest warrant and demand extradition of the Russian businessman.

    Kovtun met with Alexander Litvinenko shortly before the former KGB agent fell ill. Litvinenko’s death came weeks after being poisoned with a rare radioactive element, polonium-210.

    Investigators found radiation traces in places visited by Kovtun before he met with Litvinenko. The spy’s friend describes this as a “polonium trail” — left from Germany to London. He tells the AP that’s “as good as fingerprints on a murder weapon.”

    Also today, a Russian news agency reports that prosecutors plan further questioning of Kovtun next week.

    Unnamed friend.

    http://www.kxly.com/news/?sect_rank=6&section_id=563&story_id=7022

  18. crosspatch says:

    The “Friend” is Goldfarb … Boris Berezovsky’s publicist … or lawyer … or something.

  19. topsecretk9@AJ says:

    Nevermind…

    …Meanwhile, a friend of Litvinenko, Alex Goldfarb, urged British law enforcement officers to stop treating Kovtun as a witness and name him as a suspect, issue an international arrest warrant and demand his extradition from Russia.

    And looks like I am a little late to the party, old five hour news!

  20. topsecretk9@AJ says:

    Hard to keep up CrossP.