The cause of death was « compression to the neck, » police say. Gushkov was a former close associate of a noted critic of Russia’s President Vladimir Putin.
The death of Nikolay Gushkov, the 68-year-old Russian businessman whose body was found in his London home on Monday, is being investigated as a murder. The cause of death was « compression to the neck, » police say.
Gushkov was a former close associate of oligarch Boris Berezovsky, a flamboyant tycoon who had backed Russia’s President Vladimir Putin early in the president’s political career — but who had become a vocal critic before living in self-imposed exile. Berezovsky, who was also close to the poisoned former KGB agent Alexander Litvinenko, died in 2013, in what has been described as a hanging. All three men died in London.
The murder investigation into Gushkov’s death is being announced days after Britain’s Prime Minister Theresa May accused Russia of « attempted murder » in another case involving a high-profile Russian native living in the U. K.: former spy Sergei Skripal.
Skripal was poisoned by an exotic and lethal Novichok nerve agent that is seen as Russia’s sole property. Skripal and his daughter were found on a bench at a shopping center in Salisbury, England. They remain in the hospital; a police officer who came to the scene is also receiving care.
Because of the attack on Skripal, the Met police’s counter-terrorism command took charge of the Glushkov inquiry.
« There is no evidence to suggest a link to the incident in Salisbury, » police said as they announced the investigation into Glushkov’s death earlier this week. On Friday, police clarified that stance a bit: « At this stage there is nothing to suggest any link to the attempted murders in Salisbury, nor any evidence that he was poisoned. »
« Detectives are retaining an open mind, » the police notice continued. It asked anyone who may have seen or heard anything at Glushkov’s home on Sunday or Monday to come forward.
