Dmitry Kovtun, a Russian businessman, died of “a severe COVID-related disease” this morning, says MP Andrey Lugovoy.
“This is a grievous and irreparable loss for all of us. I address my most sincere condolences to Dima’s family and friends. Rest in peace, my friend,” Lugovoy wrote on his Telegram.
The European Court of Human Rights considers Kovtun and Lugovoy guilty of poisoning Alexander Litvinenko, a UK resident and a former FSB colonel, to death in 2006. According to Scotland Yard’s theory, the two poured a lethal dose of polonium-210 into Litvinenko’s cup of tea.
The ECHR ruled last year that Russia was responsible for the assassination and obliged the country to pay out €100,000 in compensation to Litvinenko’s widow.
Litvinenko moved to London in 2000. He faced criminal prosecution in Russia and was granted asylum in the United Kingdom. Litvinenko was a fierce critic of Vladimir Putin and claimed Russian security services were responsible for the false flag apartment bombings in 1999 when 307 people were killed in Buynaksk and Volgodonsk.
