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British Officials: Two More People Test Positive for Radiation
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Poisoning
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http://enews.voanews.com/t?r=279&c=718337&l=1009&ctl=1520D59:A6F02AD83191E160B458FA087FEE119D9574F7DCC14957C0 Traces found in
close relative of KGB spy Alexander Litvinenko





Alexander Litvinenko, former KGB spy and author of the book 'Blowing
Up Russia: Terror From Within'British health experts are testing a
close relative of ex-Russian spy Alexander Litvinenko and an Italian
security expert for the same radioactive substance that killed the
former KGB agent.

Officials in London said Friday that small traces of the highly
radioactive substance polonium 210 have been found in both people, but
not in amounts thought to be life threatening.

Significant amounts of the polonium were found in Litvinenko's body
following his death November 23.

Scientists in London performed an autopsy on his body Friday. Results
are not expected to be released for several days.

In a deathbed statement, Litvinenko accused Russian President Vladimir
Putin of ordering his murder, a charge the Kremlin denies.

The British government has asked Russia for any information it has
that would aid the investigation into Litvinenko's death. He became a
British citizen in October after defecting from Russia six years ago.





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Mario Scaramella is seen in this 2006 photo taken in Naples, southern
ItalyThe Italian being tested for traces of polonium, Mario
Scaramella, said he had met Litvinenko at a London sushi bar the day
the Russian fell ill. He said he had not eaten at the restaurant, but
met the former KGB agent to tell him they both were on an
assassination list.

Litvinenko had been investigating the murder of famous Russian
journalist Anna Politkovskaya in October. She was a frequent critic of
the Kremlin and its policies in the separatist republic of Chechnya.

Traces of the radioactive substance have been found at 12 locations in
the British capital, as well as on five airliners that have recently
flown into London's Heathrow Airport.

Depending on the amount of the poison in the body, radiation health
expert Dr. Colin Hill of the University of Southern California, says
polonium has the power to destroy the body's DNA.


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