Two Russian men accused by Britain of poisoning a former Russian spy and his daughter in England said on Thursday they had been the victims of a
Andrey Ostroukh, Andrew Osborn and Christian Lowe
September 13 2018 11:29 AM
Two Russian men accused by Britain of poisoning a former Russian spy and his daughter in England said on Thursday they had been the victims of a “fantastical coincidence” and were simply Russian businessmen on holiday abroad.
British prosecutors last week identified two Russians they said were operating under aliases – Alexander Petrov and Ruslan Boshirov – whom they accused of trying to poison Sergei and Yulia Skripal with a military-grade nerve agent in England.
Two men with physical similarities to British police images of the suspects appeared on Russian state television station RT on Thursday, denying they were military intelligence officers.
They said they felt they deserved an apology from the real perpetrators of the poisoning, if they were ever found.
Statements by the two Russians “are not credible”, the British lawmaker who represents the city in parliament said on Thursday.
“Delighted that Alexander Petrov and Ruslan Borishov were able to see the world-class attractions that #Salisbury has to offer. But very strange to come all this way for just two days while carrying Novichok in their luggage,” tweeted John Glen, the Member of Parliament for Salisbury who is also a government minister.
“Salisbury welcomes tourists from around the world and is very much open for business,” he added.
“But the Petrov/Borishov statements are not credible and don’t match the widely accepted intelligence we have on these individuals.”
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