Murderer on parliament bid by Claudia Sonea

Last year on November 6, Alexander Valterovich Litvinenko, Military Counter Intelligence Russian officer, was killed in United Kingdom due to polonium-210 radiation poisoning. In May 2007, the British Director of Public Prosecutions, Ken Macdonald, pointed Andrei Lugovoi as being suspect and seeked to extradite him. Russian government refused the British Foreign Office request under the pretext of the prohibition of extradition in Russia's constitution. Lugovoi, the alleged murderer, become famous after Moscow's refusal to extradite him to London and even created diplomatic tension between the two countries. Moreover, an unexpected opportunity appeared for him to get away of all accusation. Now that he runs for parliament on the ultra-nationalist LDPR party's ticket which leader Zhirinovsky justified the option by the fact that the British secret services made him an injustice. As a member of Parliament he gains immunity from all prosecutions that can be lifted only if members of parliament approve a special request from prosecutor. Russia has opened an investigation over the murder without making any charges. Lugovoi denies any implication and says that the British secret services are involved because Litvinenko was a critic of Kremlin that fled to London. The truth is not yet revealed, but it is awkward to have on the Parliament a person that has even the allegation of murder. The list will become formal at the LDPR party conference in Moscow and will be put forward at the parliamentary elections in December. Stay connected to see what's next.

related story: http://uk.news.yahoo.com/afp/20070916/tpl-russia-britain-spy-diplomacy-politic-5b839a9_1.html

by Claudia Sonea for PocketNews (http://pocketnews.tv)

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