New Details From the Skripal Case: Boris Johnson Admits UK Had Poison AND Even Antidote
There are new details in the case of the poisoning of the British agent Skripal and his daughter. New Scotland Yard has impounded the vehicle in which Yulia had arrived. The cop who found the Skripals in Salisbury has come out of his coma and is giving his testimony. The victims are doing better, too. Chemical experts have found discrepancies in London's statements, which point to the UK special services' involvement.
Anton Lyadov will continue.
Andrey Sychov: "I spent 2.5 years with him. He saw right through people".
Konstantin Lapin: "This man sees everything, but nobody notices him".
The same unit, adjacent beds, 3 years in the same prison camp. He spent almost 3 years with the British spy, Sergey Skripal. He refused to do sweeping duty, paying off with 5 packs of cigarettes per month. He worked in clothing manufacturing, where he cut off threads, and he was on the telephone often.
Andrey Sychov, a former Rostov-on-Don head of the CID: I was standing with a friend when he came up to us, he was very happy. He was, like, 'Guys, I'm going home soon.' We said, 'Viktorovich, you still have a lot left.' He said it was alright".
- When did he get out?
- In about 2-3 months. I figured his current bosses didn't leave him hanging. That's what happened.
Fresh footage from a Salisbury suburb where Skripal used to live and was allegedly poisoned. The police tow the car which his daughter drove to meet him from the London Airport before she was poisoned.
Today, the local media said that the poisonous substance could've been spread through the car's ventilation system, or it could've been applied to the car's parts — the door handle, the steering wheel. New Scotland Yard stated that Skripal and his daughter were poisoned by the A-234 nerve agent. It really surprised professional chemists. Here's why.
Dmitry Gladyshev, an expert in poisonous substances: "You need samples for clear identification. This means that the UK chemists had to have the substance used to poison Skripal".
It turns out that the UK special services do have this substance. The UK's MFA rep Boris Johnson casually mentioned it in his interview with Deutsche Welle.
Boris Johnson, UK's MFA rep: I'm very sad to see what's happening. And, when I looked at the results from the Porton Down lab…
- So, they have samples?
- Yes, they do. And they were very distinct in their conclusion.
Experts also distinctly believe that if this substance were used, Skripal and his daughter would've died on the spot.
Dmitry Gladyshev: "This poses another question. Why didn't they die? This means they had taken an antidote. Another question. If they took the antidote, who gave it to them? The UK gave it to them, the British did. This means they knew what they were poisoned with. This really looks like an operation."
Despite these statements, London is still demanding an explanation from Russia.
Sergei Ryabkov, Russia's Deputy Foreign Minister: "They are bad-mouthing us. It's hard not to feel sorry for a great country that has resorted to such measures. They're the ones that have to explain to us what happened to one of our citizens — Skripal and her father. They're the ones that have to give us information that we can use to determine what happened. They need to work with us; given the circumstances, we have to find answers. Russia couldn't have violated the Chemical Weapon Convention in any way."
The Matrosskaya Tishina (Seaman's Silence) prison. This is where Sergey Skripal was brought after he was arrested. In the beginning, he keeps to himself, barely talking to other convicts. Eventually, new details of his life before prison surface.
Konstantin Lapin, a former director of the 4th FSC head office: "There are rumors that he used to use cocaine and heroin".
The UK media has published information that Skripal tested positive for fentanyl.
Dmitry Gladyshev: "Chemical dependency researchers confirm that if a person had been using narcotics for a long time, such as heroin and other hard controlled substances, they will never forget what it feels like".
All the details could've been figured out if the UK special services started to cooperate with Russia. However, for now, to any request from Russia, the UK answers with a categorical "no".
Anton Lyadov, Ilya Kuzmin, Valeria Makhova, Vesti.