RUSSIAN POISONINGS: SERGEI SKRIPAL (PART 2)

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"A person gives over his whole life for his homeland and then some bastard comes along and betrays such people. How will he be able to look into the eyes of his children, the pig. Whatever they got in exchange for it, those 30 pieces of silver they were given, they will choke on them. Believe me!” Mr. Putin, practically snarling, said when asked to comment about the swap on live television. 

Mr Vladimir Putin, President of Russia 

In Part 1, we left off with Mr Sergey Skripal being taken to USA on a private plane after being exchanged in a swap, together with 3 other people.

OPERATION GHOST STORIES

After years of observation and gathering intelligence, the FBI (US Federal Bureau of Investigations) led a sting against 10 Russia sleeper agents on June 27, 2010. Instead of putting them in jail, the US government decided that it was worth it to swap these 10 spies back to Russia for 4 people that the US was interested in. The idea was to do this swap and then this whole episode could be forgotten, in a bid to rebuild the USA- Russian diplomatic ties.

The four persons that USA was interested in were: Igor V. Sutyagin, Sergei Skripal, Alexander Zaporozhsky and Gennadi Vasilenko. Both Sutyagin and Skripal got off in London, and the others got off in Dulles International Airport, close to the USA capital of Washington DC. All of these men have been accused of having contact with foreign agencies spreading information that was sensitive to Russia.

SETTLED IN SALISBURY

After getting off the USA charter plane, Skripal decided that London was for him. As he had ties to MI6, I'm sure some old friends got in touch with him and helped him settle in his new English life. 

He found a home in Salisbury. It's a small, sleepy town about 141 kilometres outside of London. Salisbury main attraction is its cathedral, that stands very grand and imposing, in an early English Gothic style. 

Salisbury Cathedral 

Ljudmila Skripal also moved to Salisbury with her husband, soon after the swap. Unfortunately, she passed away from her cancer in 2012, two years after the swap and move to this idyllic, English town.  After that, Mr Skripal's loneliness deepened. 

Their son, Sasha also moved to England with them. Unfortunately, he died in 2017 while spending the weekend in St Petersburg. 

He attended English as a Second Language (ESL) classes, and introduced himself as a construction company boss from Bulgaria, which nobody believed. In his free time, Sergei was seen at the local Social Club, drinking neat vodka and being rambunctious and loud. As the only Russian customer in the establishment, it was hard to not notice his behaviour, along with his white tracksuit. 

CCTV picture of Mr Skripal at the local convenience store 

He was seen around town, talking to people about his home country. It was clear that he missed Russia. His daily routine included going to the local deli buying scratching tickets and boasting about being a spy. What people didn't know was that he still involved in intelligence activities. Skripal would often go on assignments organised by MI6, briefing European and US intelligence services about GRU operations and tactics. These talks may have been important or just a ruse to keep him busy, as old spies tend to get bored and restless after having this ''great importance'' lost when they get retired. 

DAUGHTER'S VISIT 

Yulia Skripal was planning a trip to England as she was recently pregnant and planning a wedding to her long-term boyfriend, Stepan Vikeev. She knew it was impossible for her father to return to Russia for the nuptials, so she planned to visit him to at least get his blessing. Coincidentally, her boyfriend has not been seen after the poisonings took place. 

Yulia and Sergei Skripal enjoying time together at a restaurant 

On 3rd of March 2018, Yulia flew into Heathrow Airport. She was picked up by a family friend. Yulia prepared herself for a nice visit with her father, the only remaining living relative that she had left. Her mother passed and one year before, in 2017, her brother also died. 

Unbeknown to her, tragedy would strike only one day later. 

CONTAMINATION IN SAILSBURY 

On 4th of March, Sergei's car was seen on London Road, in the morning just after 9.00am. This is the home of the cemetery where the matriarch and son of the family are buried. After that, at about 1.00pm, the car is seen Devizes Road driving towards the city centre. They park the car at a shopping precinct and go down to the pub, called the Mill. After that they go to a restaurant called Zizzi and eat, until about 3.30pm. After 45 minutes, police get called to a park bench where an older man and a younger woman are lying, motionless and foaming at the mouth. 

Map of the key places in the Salisbury poisonings

The Skripals are sent to the hospital, along with one of the attending police officers. Later on, they are in critical condition.

Police now have a massive job on their hand once they figure out that the Skripals have been poisoned with novichok. A deadly, and illegal, nerve agent known to come from Russia. Initially, the authorities don't know what has caused the Skripals to be ill, but once they find out, the country goes in furore and a massive clean up operation is underway, along with one British citizen's death, caused by the deadly leftover poison. 

Investigators wearing HAZMAT suits at the crime scenes 

In Part 3, we will take a look at exactly what happened to the Skripals, and if we find out who did it. Also, the country's reaction to yet another Russian assassination on UK soil, and the subsequent police investigation. 

References:

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