Andrei Lugovoi

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Andrei Lugovoi.

Andrei Lugovoi (Lugovoy) (Russian: Андрей Луговой) (Born 1966 in Azerbaijan SSR ) is a Russian politician and businessman and deputy of the State Duma of the Russian Federation for the LDPR. He is a former KGB operative and the ex-head of the security industry "Ninth Wave." He is wanted by British police on suspicion of the murder of Alexander Litvinenko.

1 KGB career
2 Political career
3 Alexander Litvinenko poisoning
- 3.1 Timeline
4 References
5 External links

[edit] KGB career

In 1987 Lugovoi joined the KGB's 9th directorate which provided security for top state officials. He was a platoon commander for five years and then served as a commander in the Kremlin regiment's training company. In 1991 he was transferred to the personal security unit until his resignation at the end of 1996. During his time in the KGB he provided security for Prime Minister Yegor Gaidar, the head of the presidential administration Sergey Filatov and Foreign Minister Andrey Kozyrev.

Lugovoi went on to work in the private security business. For several years he was head of security at the private television company ORT, then owned by now fugitive tycoons Boris Berezovsky and Badri Patarkatsishvili. In 2001 Lugovoi was arrested and charged with organizing the escape of Nikolai Glushkov, a former deputy director-general of Aeroflot arrested in 2000 on fraud charges.

Lugovoi's company Pershin is involved in private security, soft drinks and wine^[1], and is said to be worth over £100^{[citation needed]} million.

[edit] Political career

On September 15, 2007, Vladimir Zhirinovsky, leader of the Liberal Democratic Party of Russia (LDPR), has announced that Andrei Lugovoi will be in the second place after Zhirinovsky on his party's candidate list for the Duma election. This means that Andrei Lugovoi could become a Russian MP in December 2007 and acquire parliamentary immunity.^[1] Lugovoi himself has confirmed that he will take part in next Duma election^[2] and on 17 September 2007, during a Liberal Democratic Party of Russia meeting, has also said he would like to bid for the Kremlin run.^[3] On reacting to Litvinenko's death, Zhirinovsky said: Any traitor must be eliminated using any methods. If you have joined the special services to work, then you should work, but to betray, to run away abroad, to give up the secrets you learned while working - all of this looks bad.^[4] Sergei Abeltsev, Zhirinovsky's former bodyguard and State Duma member from the LDPR, also stated: The deserved punishment reached the traitor. I am sure his terrible death will be a warning to all the traitors that in Russia the treason is not to be forgiven. I would recommend to citizen Berezovsky to avoid any food at the commemoration for his crime accomplice Litvinenko.^[5]

On December 10, 2007, British Ambassador in Moscow Tony Brenton voiced regret over Andrei Lugovoi's election to the State Duma, saying: "It is a pity that a man wanted for murder gains political recognition. It does Russia no good at all to have Lugovoi there in the parliament. It continues the suspicion. If he steps a foot out of Russia he will be arrested. We want him." ^[6]

[edit] Alexander Litvinenko poisoning

Main article: Alexander Litvinenko poisoning

They had a meeting on the day Litvinenko fell ill (1 November 2006). Litvinenko died later in November from radiation poisoning caused by polonium-210, and on 22 May 2007 British officials charged Lugovoi with Litvinenko's murder, announcing they would seek his extradition from Russia. Russia declined to extradite Lugovoi, citing that extradition of citizens is not allowed under the Russian constitution. Russia has said that they could take on the case themselves if Britain provided evidence against Lugovoi but Britain has not handed over any evidence. The head of the investigating committee at the General Prosecutor's Office said Russia has not yet received any evidence from Britain on Lugovoi. "We have not received any evidence from London of Lugovoi's guilt, and those documents we have are full of blank spaces and contradictions."^[7] To the contrary, he became very popular in Russia as a "hero" of Litvinenko murder controversy, which skyrocketed his political career.^{[citation needed]}

Lugovoi had visited London at least three times in the month before Litvinenko's death and met with him four times. Lugovoi met with Litvinenko on the day he fell ill (1 November). Traces of polonium-210 have been discovered in all three hotels where Lugovoi stayed after flying to London on 16 October, in the Pescatori restaurant in Dover Street, Mayfair, where Lugovoi is understood to have dined before 1 November, and aboard two aircraft on which he had travelled.^[8]^[9] He has declined to say whether he had been contaminated with polonium-210, the substance that led to Litvinenko's death on 23 November 2006.^[10]

[edit] Timeline

On 30 November 2006 Georgian tycoon Badri Patarkatsishvili described Lugovoi as a "close friend" with whom he had been working for 13 years. He said he hoped Lugovoi was innocent, but added that there is "no such thing as a former KGB agent."
On 4 December 2006 Lugovoi visited a hospital in Moscow for medical tests.
On 9 December 2006 Lugovoi was released from the hospital and declared to be in "satisfactory condition."^[10]
On 26 January 2007 The Guardian reported that the British government was preparing an extradition request asking that Lugovoi be returned to the UK to stand trial for Litvinenko's murder.^[11]
On 5 February 2007 Boris Berezovsky told the BBC that on his deathbed, Litvinenko said that Lugovoi was responsible for his poisoning. ^[12]
On 22 May 2007 British officials said they had called for an arrest warrant against Andrei Lugovoi in Litvinenko’s death. ^[13]
On 28 May 2007 the British Foreign Office formally submitted a request for Lugovoi's extradition to the Russian Government. ^[14]
On May 22, 2007 Britain's Director of Public Prosecutions announced that Britain would seek extradition of Lugovoi and attempt to charge him with murdering Litvinenko. Russia has previously stated that it has no right to allow the extradition of any Russian citizen for trial in Britain. ^[15]
On May 28, 2007 a formal extradition request was given to Russia by Britain.^[14] This was confirmed by both the British embassy in Moscow and the Russian prosecution office.
- Lugovoi is quoted as saying he is a "victim not a perpetrator of a radiation attack", and he has called the charges "politically motivated".
- The Constitution of Russia, like that of France, Germany, Austria, China and Japan, forbids extradition of its citizens to foreign countries (Art. 61), so the request cannot be fulfilled.^[16] Russian citizens can be convicted of crimes committed abroad by Russian courts in case foreign law agencies provide necessary evidence.
On May 31, 2007 Lugovoi held a news conference at which he accused MI6 of attempting to recruit him and blamed either MI6, the Russian mafia, or fugitive Kremlin opponent Boris Berezovsky for the killing.^[17]
On July 4, 2007 Russia formally declined a UK request to extradite Lugovoi.^[18]