Former FSB officer Aleksandr Litvinenko, who died in London of polonium poisoning in 2006, worked for the British foreign intelligence service as well aiding Spain in their fight against the Russian mafia, the UK inquest revealed Thursday. "At the time of his death Litvinenko had been for a number of years a regular and paid agent and employee of MI6 with a dedicated handler whose pseudonym was Martin," Ben Emmerson QC, representing Marina Litvinenko, told the coroner. Emmerson said that MI6 "tasked" Litvinenko to connect with Spanish intelligence whom he provided with information on "organized crime and Russian Mafia activity in Spain and more broadly." The information went directly to Spanish prosecutors. The agent was paid by both the British and Spanish secret services into a joint bank account he held with his wife, the hearing at Camden Town Hall, in London, was told. Litvinenko allegedly met "Martin" on October 31, 2006 -- less than a month before his death, Emmerson revealed. The handler is expected to testify in the inquest, an investigation thats looking to find the reasons behind his death but not rule on anyone's guilt. The QC and Litvinenko's family stressed that such deep involvement of the agent with the British intelligence put even more responsibility on the UK government to protect him Litvinenko, who was aged 43 at the time of his death, died of polonium-210 poisoning after allegedly drinking tea with his two former colleagues at a central London hotel ...

• published: 14 Dec 2012
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• author: salfordianthe