Case Study Example: Alexander Litvinenko Death

The man who solved his own murder, Alexander Litvinenko a former Russian spy died three weeks after meeting with two former agents at a bar in London. Mr. Litvinenko’s tea was poisoned with a radioactive material called polonium-210. Consuming a large amount of polonium-210 quickly led to severe health issues, and death within weeks. In this paper, you will learn how Mr. Litvinenko solved his own murder, the danger of large amounts of polonium-210, and the effects that it had on Mr. Litvinenko and others exposed to polonium-210.

Before November 1, 2006, Mr. Litvinenko was an extremely healthy 43-year-old man, who did not drink or smoke, and exercised regularly.  He was a former FSB secret service officer in Russia, where he publicly ridiculed the Russian government and Vladimir Putin, accusing them of conducting and sponsoring terrorism. In 2000, he fled to London after he was dismissed. In London, Mr. Litvinenko worked as a journalist and continued to publicly ridicule Vladimir Putin and worked for the British Intelligence services, (Who was, n.d.). On November 1, 2006, Mr. Litvinenko met with former Russian agents, Andrei Lugovoy and Dmitri Kovtun at a hotel bar in London. At the bar Mr. Litvinenko drank tea with the agents and fell suddenly ill that night. He spent the night vomiting, two days later his condition worsened, he was experiencing severe pain and profuse bloody diarrhea. He was poisoned with a radioactive material called polonium-210. Mr. Litvinenko was admitted into the hospital three days after consuming the tea, and died three weeks later November 23, 2006, due to heart and organ failure. 

Throughout his life Mr. Litvinenko made many dangerous enemies by involving himself in many activities that challenged the corruption in the Federal Security Service and organized crime. By many he was perceived as a traitor of the FBS, and the day after his death the Russian State Duma stated, ““Last night Alexander Litvinenko died in a London hospital. The deserved punishment reached the traitor,”” (Owen, 2016). Mr. Litvinenko believed that only one man would be capable of this, ““That person is the President of the Russian Federation Vladimir Putin,”” (Owen, 2016). Before Mr. Litvinenko died, he said, ““I have no doubt whatsoever that this was done by the Russian Secret Services,”” (Owen, 2016). Evidence strongly indicates that Mr. Litvinenko was poisoned by polonium-210 when he drank tea during the meeting with Mr. Lugovoy and Mr. Kovtun. The entire bar was tested by forensic experts, they examined the bar, tables, chairs, teapots, cups, spoons, saucers, and milk jugs. The teapot Mr. Litvinenko drank his tea from was easily found, “it gave off readings of 100,000 becquerels per centimeter squared,” (Who was, n.d.). Evidence points to Mr. Lugovoy and Mr. Kovtun, there is footage of them both going to the restrooms separately, “contamination was found (at particularly high levels) in the gentlemen’s lavatories close to the Pine Bar,” (Who was, n.d.). They found that the primary area for contamination in the Millennium Hotel was the toilet in the room occupied by Mr. Kovtun and Mr. Lugovoy. Although Mr. Litvinenko was poisoned by Mr. Kovtun and Mr. Lugovoy, they had no personal motives and were acting on behalf of others. There is strong circumstantial evidence that the Russian State, President Putin was most likely responsible for Mr. Litvinenko’s death, as he was an enemy of Putin, (Who was, n.d.). Before Mr. Litvinenko died, he knew who was responsible for his death, he had solved his own murder.

The tea that Mr. Litvinenko drank on November 1, 2006, was poisoned with large amount of polonium-210. Polonium-210, “is a naturally occurring radioactive material that emits highly hazardous alpha (positively charged) particles,” (BBC NEWS, 2006). Alpha particles carry a high amount of energy that can damage or destroy cells inside the body. Polonium-210 is not harmful in small amounts, in fact the Earth’s atmosphere, soil and everyone’s body all contain a small amount of it. It is a product of the decay of radon gas and is emitted into the atmosphere and soil at very low concentrations, (Radiation Studies, 2O14). At high doses it causes severe damage to tissue and organs when inhaled or ingested. Polonium-210 cannot pass through the skin, “because the radiation has a very short range, it only harms nearby tissue,” (BBC NEWS, 2006). To cause harm to the body polonium-210 must be inhaled, come in through an open wound or be ingested. If large quanties are inhaled or consumed in a short period of time it can lead to radiation exposure to the internal organs, which can cause severe medical problems and even death. When drinking the tea Mr. Litvinenko ingested a very large amount, estimated to be about 4.4Gbq of polonium-210. They sampled Mr. Litvinenko’s lungs, spleen, kidneys, and liver. The highest amount 49,000bq/g of tissue was found in the kidneys, and the lowest result of 3,500bq/g of tissue was found in the lungs, (Owen, 2016). Consuming this large amount of polonium-210, quickly led to many severe medical issues and Mr. Litvinenko’s death three weeks after ingestion. Large amounts of polonium-210 is very rare, difficult to produce, and dangerous to handle. The polonium-210 had a major effect on Mr. Litvinenko and those who encountered it. 

By mass, polonium-210 is one of the deadliest toxins known to man, yet we are surrounded by it every day. The environmental levels of polonium-210 are harmless to humans, but large amounts when inhaled or ingested are deadly. This incident in London was an act of nuclear terrorism, thought to expose at least 700 people to radiation. Although, no one else besides Mr. Litvinenko became seriously ill. Many locations in London temporarily closed as a safety precaution. Mr. Litvinenko inhaled, “only about 5% of the total amount of polonium-210,” meaning almost all the polonium-210 was ingested, (Who was, n.d.). When swallowed polonium-210 becomes concentrated in red blood cells and then spreads all over the body. As the polonium-210 spreads, “it leaves a trail of reactive radicals because it takes electrons from any molecule in its path,” (MediLexicon, n.d.). This alpha particle radiation can cause damage to DNA leading to genetic changes and most likely cell death. Bone marrow tissue is susceptible to damage because it forms the lining of the gut and creates the red blood cells. Symptoms of contamination to large amounts of polonium-210 are nausea, vomiting, hair loss, low blood cell count, diarrhea, and damage to bone marrow. The higher the dose of polonium-210 the faster the effects will be. Mr. Litvinenko experienced all these symptoms, which soon lead to organ and heart failure, then death three weeks after being contaminated. After Mr. Litvinenko died the forensic pathologist team had to wear white suits, protective gloves, and specialized hoods with fresh filtered air pumped through them because of the high amount of radiation. His body was described as, “most dangerous post-mortem examinations ever undertaken in the Western world,” (Who was, n.d.). Mr. Litvinenko was buried in a lead lined coffin because his contamination was so intense. 

Mr. Litvinenko was a healthy 43-year-old man who solved his own murder, after falling ill shortly after drinking some tea with two former agents. He was poisoned with a large amount of the radioactive element polonium-210, which lead to his death three weeks later. In this paper, you learned about how Mr. Litvinenko solved his own murder, what polonium-210 is, and the effect that it has on humans when inhaled or ingested. The radioactive element polonium-210 is harmless until large amounts are consumed.