Sergei Skripal
 | This article documents a current event. Information may change rapidly as the event progresses, and initial news reports may be unreliable. The latest updates to this article may not reflect the most current information. (March 2018) |
Sergei Viktorovich Skripal | |
|---|---|
| Born | June 23, 1951 |
Sergei Viktorovich Skripal (Russian: Серге́й Ви́кторович Скрипаль, born 23 June 1951) is a former Russian army officer who was convicted of spying for the United Kingdom.[1]
Skripal, who held the rank of colonel, was involved in military intelligence, although the details of his work have been withheld.[2] Some reports have speculated that he was associated with the FSB. According to Russian prosecutors, he began working for the United Kingdom's MI6 intelligence agency in the late 1990s, while serving in the Russian Ground Forces. He was reportedly paid a large sum of money for giving away the identities of a number of Russian agents.[3]
In December 2004, Skripal was arrested. He was charged with "high treason in the form of espionage", and was convicted. Prosecutors initially argued for fifteen years in prison — Skripal was eventually sentenced to thirteen, in recognition of his poor health and the fact that he co-operated with investigators. The affair was not revealed to the public until after he was sentenced in August 2006.[4] Skripal's lawyers have appealed the sentence.[5]
In July 2010, Skripal was released as part of a spy exchange for the ten Russian agents arrested in the United States as part of the Illegals Program.[6][7][8]
Suspected poisoning
In early March 2018, Skripal was the subject of a suspected poisoning, leaving him critically ill in Salisbury District Hospital, at which a major incident was declared.[9] According to a statement from Wiltshire Police, "two people – a man aged in his 60s, and a woman aged in her 30s – were found unconscious on a bench in The Maltings in Salisbury" on 4 March.[10]
References
- ^ "Who is former Russian intelligence officer Sergei Skripal?". BBC News. 5 March 2018. Retrieved 5 March 2018.
- ^ "Russian colonel sentenced to 13 years in prison for spying for Britain", khaleejtimes.com, accessed 10 August 2006.
- ^ "Russian convicted spy colonel worked for Britain's MI6", rian.ru, accessed 10 August 2006.
- ^ "Russian colonel jailed for spying", bbc.co.uk, accessed 10 August 2006.
- ^ "Colonel convicted of spying for U.K. appeals verdict", rian.ru, accessed 11 August 2006.
- ^ Russia and US preparing spy swap The Telegraph, 7 July 2010.
- ^ Russian spies deported in exchange for four pardoned agents
- ^ Norton-Taylor, Richard; Parfitt, Tom; Clark, Andrew (11 July 2010). "British security services debrief two Russians freed in spy swap". The Guardian. London. Retrieved 5 March 2018.
- ^ "Critically ill man 'former Russian spy'". BBC News. 5 March 2018. Retrieved 5 March 2018.
- ^ "Alleged former Russian spy critically ill after exposure to unknown substance in Salisbury". The Daily Telegraph. 5 March 2018. Retrieved 5 March 2018.