Alexander Litvinenko: coroner urges public inquiry into death
Source: The Guardian
The coroner overseeing the inquest into the death of the Russian spy Alexander Litvinenko has called for a public inquiry into his death, after concluding that he could not otherwise consider secret evidence relating to Russia's involvement in the killing.
Sir Robert Owen, the senior judge acting as coroner, wrote to the justice secretary, Chris Grayling, to request the inquiry, having reluctantly agreed last month to exclude documents linking Russia's security agencies to Litvinenko's poisoning in 2006, along with other material examining whether Britain could have prevented the murder, at the request of the foreign secretary, William Hague.
Attempting to examine Litvinenko's death without considering such material, Owen said at the time, would inevitably render the inquest "incomplete … potentially misleading and/or unfair".
The inquest's counsel has already stated its view that the government material presents a prima facie case that Russia was behind the killing of Litvinenko, who died after being slipped radioactive polonium in a cup of tea at a London hotel.
Read more: http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2013/jun/05/alexander-litvinenko-coroner-public-inquiry1
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