NOVICHOK: Public inquiry into death of Dawn Sturgess may be delayed again
A preliminary hearing was held today (Friday 15th July)
The full public inquiry into the death of Durrington mum Dawn Sturgess due to Novichok may be delayed once again.
A preliminary hearing held in London this morning revealed that there have been continued delays in evidence being security cleared.
This means that there is "significant doubt" that the inquiry will started early next year, as planned.
Dawn's family have said that their "patience has worn extremely thin" and the lengthy wait for "the truth" about her death risked further compromise to public protection.
Michael Mansfield QC, for Ms Sturgess's family, said:
"The family have exercised understanding and patience.
"However, that patience has worn extremely thin because of the time lapse already alluded to, namely this is the fourth anniversary (of Ms Strugess's death, on July 8 2018).
"If this inquiry is going to satisfy the objectives - the search for truth as well as the protection of the public in the future - any more lapse of time will compromise those objectives."
The review will look at how Ms Sturgess came into contact with the nerve agent and the Russian state's involvement in the incident.
Lawyers for the Government and police said "special sensitivities" around the case - not least the identity of the suspects, and the geopolitical landscape - presented "significant challenges" to evidence being provided.
Andrew O'Connor QC, counsel to the inquiry, said:
"When we say these are exceptional difficulties and we are working as hard as we can to get around them, that is not a platitude - it represents hard work on all sides."
Several people involved in the investigation are expected to seek anonymity due to the risk of creating a "target list" for terrorists, the hearing was told.
Metropolitan Police identified three suspects wanted in connection with the poisonings: Denis Sergeev, Alexander Mishkin and Anatoliy Chepiga, who used the aliases Sergey Fedotov, Alexander Petrov and Ruslan Boshirov respectively while in the UK.
Two suspects, Petrov and Boshirov, subsequently gave an interview with Russian state media in which they said they were only in the UK, briefly, to visit Salisbury Cathedral.
Charges have been authorised against all three suspects.
Police believe they are in Russia, but there is little chance of them being brought to the UK to face justice because there is no extradition treaty between the two nations.