Detectives investigating the death of the former Russian spy Alexander Litvinenko said today they had handed a file on the case to British prosecutors.
Litvinenko, a former Russian spy who came to live in Britain and became a fierce Kremlin critic, died of polonium 210 poisoning in London on November 23rd last year.
"(The Metropolitan Police) has this morning handed a file to the Crown Prosecution Service regarding the investigation into the death of Alexander Litvinenko," a statement from London's Metropolitan Police Scotland Yard headquarters said.
"We are not prepared to discuss the contents of the file." Prosecutors said they would examine the file in detail before deciding whether any charges would be brought.
"We'll go through absolutely everything that we've received in depth to see whether any offence has been committed or if anybody should be charged," a CPS spokesman said.
He added: "It will be dealt with expeditiously", but said it was likely to take some time to process the information and decide what action to take. "This is quite a unique case so it really is impossible to say how long it will take us."
Litvinenko made a statement on his deathbed accusing the Kremlin of killing him. The Kremlin has dismissed his allegations as nonsense.