British police claim that the bottle was at the origin of the Novichok poisoning by the pair

British detectives investigate the poisoning of two people having a military grade nerve agent said Friday that a small bottle found in the home of one of the victims had been tested positive for Novichok, a lethal substance produced in the Soviet Union during the Cold War.

Dawn Sturgess, 44, and Charlie Rowley, 45, was disgusted on June 30 in a town in southwestern England near Salisbury, where British authorities said that he was "deadly". a former Russian spy and her daughter had been poisoned in Novichok in March

. Rowley was in critical condition for over a week, but regained consciousness.

The Metropolitan Police said the bottle was found during the excavations of Rowley's house on Wednesday and scientists confirmed that the bottle was Novichok. Police have been questioning Rowley since he became aware.

The police continue to look for where the bottle comes from and how it got into Rowley's house. They said that further tests would be carried out to try to establish whether the nerve agent came from the same batch as that used to poison the former Russian spy Sergei Skripal and his daughter, Yulia .

More than 100 police officers had searched the source of Rowley and Sturgess's exposure in the city of Amesbury, where they lived, and Salisbury, where the Skripals were poisoned. The Skripals survived and were released from Salisbury Hospital before Rowley and Sturgess were poisoned. British authorities took father and daughter to a secret protected location

British police said earlier that they suspected the new victims of handling a container contaminated by Novichok and that it was not safe for them. had no reason to think that Rowley and Sturgess were deliberately targeted. Commissioner Neil Basu, one of Britain's leading counterterrorism officials, told local residents this week that Novichok could remain active for 50 years when it was kept in a sealed container. He said that he could not guarantee that there would be more traces of the deadly poison in the area.

Basu said Friday that cords would remain in place in some places to protect the public despite the apparent breakthrough in the case. He will not provide more information about the bottle found in Rowley's house.

"This is clearly a significant and positive development, but we can not guarantee that no more substance remains," Basu said. The continued blockage of the areas "would allow for further careful searches as a precautionary measure for public safety and assist the investigation team."

The British Foreign Office said Friday that the United Kingdom had asked the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons. collect samples for analysis in their laboratories. The organization has the power to assign responsibility for the use of chemical weapons.

The Novichok saga began in March when the Skripal fell mysteriously sick on a park bench in Salisbury. They were found to have been poisoned with Novichok.

Prime Minister Theresa May blamed the Russian government for the attack, which the Kremlin vehemently denied. The case has led the United States and other countries to expel a large number of Russian diplomats.

Public health officials said the risk of public exposure was low, but advised people not to pick up strange objects. [ad_2]
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