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Berezovsky Acted in Coordination With UK Intelligence – Russian Prosecutor

© Sputnik / Ilya Pitalev / Go to the mediabankBoris Berezovsky
Boris Berezovsky - Sputnik International
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Late Russian oligarch Boris Berezovsky was not the mastermind behind former Russian security officer Alexander Litvinenko's poisoning, but collaborated with the UK intelligence services and paid for this with his life when he decided to return to his homeland, Russian Prosecutor General Yury Chaika said Wednesday.

"Although Berezovsky played a key role in this provocation [Litvinenko's murder], he was not the mastermind… I have no doubt that Berezovsky acted in accordance with the UK intelligence services' instructions and jointly with them, so he subsequently paid with his life when decided to return home," Chaika told the Russian upper house in an annual report.

The official noted that "despite all his criminal talents" Berezovsky could not physically obtain polonium and falsify "such a volume of evidence that was created by UK investigators."

READ MORE: Why Berezovsky's Death in Britain Leaves More Questions Than Answers

Alexander Litvinenko, former KGB spy and author of the book Blowing Up Russia: Terror From Within photographed at his home in London. (File) - Sputnik International
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Berezovsky was a Russian oligarch, who had been living in the United Kingdom since 2000 in self-imposed exile due to charges of fraud, failing to repatriate foreign currency revenues, and abuse of office against him in Russia, before his death in March 2013.

Investigators concluded that he died from an apparent hanging and that there was no evidence of external involvement. Some UK media outlets claimed the businessman was on the verge of bankruptcy at the time of his death. He is believed to have left his estate more than 300 million pounds in debt when he died.

Ex-Russian spy Alexander Litvinenko was poisoned back in November 2006 and died later that month. Three weeks earlier, he reportedly had tea with his ex-colleagues Dmitry Kovtun and Andrei Lugovoy in downtown London.

READ MORE: Russian Diplomats Expelled Over Skripal Case Leave Embassy in London

Shortly after his death, UK authorities claimed that Litvinenko had been poisoned by his former coworkers, who made use of the radioactive isotope polonium-210 for this purpose. A public inquiry into Litvinenko's death was launched by the UK government in July 2014.

The Russian Foreign Ministry slammed the UK inquiry as politicized, saying it was not transparent enough, while Alexander's father Valter Litvinenko said that his son was poisoned by biochemist Alexander Goldfarb, who was part of Berezovsky's inner circle.

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