The mystery of the 4 hours of phone shutdown of former Russian spy Skripal and his son

Former Russian spy Sergei Skripal and his son. Photo: EPA

Mysterious phone shutdown

According toSunDetectives tracing the movements of former Russian intelligence colonel Sergei Skripal and his daughter Yulia discovered an unusual detail: both of their mobile phones were turned off for four hours on the day they were found unconscious on a bench outside a shopping center in Salisbury, England, on March 4. The global positioning system (GPS) signals of the two phones were not working at the crucial moment, so the movements of Mr. Skripal and his daughter before the incident remain a mystery.

SunThe most likely reason, a source said, was that former spy Skripal and his daughter may have gone to meet someone and wanted to turn off the GPS system. This is also understandable for a former spy like Mr. Skripal.

Investigators are trying to determine what Mr Skripal and his daughter did during the four hours their phones were off. At 9:15 a.m. on March 4, they went to the cemetery to visit the grave of Mr Skripal’s late wife. After four hours of being off the phone, at 1:40 p.m., they went to The Maltings shopping center, then ate at Zizzi restaurant before being found unconscious on a bench at 3:35 p.m.

British police are reviewing all phone records in the area where the Skripal attack took place. All data provided by phone service providers is being formatted and analyzed to piece together the movements of all people in Salisbury that day.

Police hope that after processing this huge amount of data, they will be able to identify the phone used by the perpetrator before approaching Mr. Skripal and his son and using the poison to assassinate them.

“The key is to establish whether any phones were found in the areas where the Skripals had been on that day and before. This could have been carried by someone who was following them or meeting them. If the phone is found but no trace of any of the individuals involved can be made, the police can still identify the origin of the phone and the SIM card that was used. This could be very valuable intelligence,” the source said.

The victim's ex-girlfriend

Investigators froze and moved the bench where Mr Skripal and his son were found unconscious to another location. Photo: EPA

Regarding the mysterious attack on the father and son of a former Russian spy,TelegraphMr Skripal has an ex-girlfriend who also lives in Salisbury, but she is so frightened that she is reluctant to give any information to the police. A mutual friend of Mr Skripal and his ex-girlfriend said the mystery woman did not want to come forward because she feared similar retaliation.

“She was absolutely terrified. When she read the news about what had happened, she said to me, ‘That’s my ex-boyfriend.’ She was really worried,” said Mr Skripal’s friend.

According to the couple’s friend, the police did not even know Mr Skripal had such a girlfriend, and that she was also believed to be from Russia. While Mr Skripal’s girlfriend may not have had crucial information about the attack, if she could tell the police where he had been before the attack, that would be important information for the police.

The British government has so far accused Russia of using a nerve agent to poison the former spy and his daughter, while the Kremlin has denied all allegations. Both sides have also deployed retaliatory measures against each other, including the expulsion of 23 diplomats from each other's territories.

Simultaneous retaliation against Russia?

Russian diplomats and their families move out of the embassy in London following the UK's expulsion order. Photo: Reuters

Washington PostPresident Donald Trump is planning to expel at least 20 Russian diplomats in response to the alleged attack on former spy Sergei Skripal and his daughter, US and European officials said. The expulsion notice could come as early as tomorrow, March 26, and could lead to a decision by Russia to retaliate by expelling US diplomats.

US State Department spokeswoman Heather Nauert said this week that Washington is considering “a range of measures to respond to Russia’s actions in the UK, both to demonstrate solidarity with its ally (the UK) and to hold Russia accountable for its violations of international agreements and norms.”

However, US officials are still waiting for the reaction of major European countries related to the case of the former Russian spy. In addition to the US, about 20 European countries, including the Baltic countries, Sweden, Poland, France, Denmark, the Czech Republic, and the Netherlands, are said to be planning to expel Russian officials and take many other retaliatory measures following the UK's decisions.

“This is a big test for Britain, especially in the post-Brexit context, to see how many real allies it has,” said an unnamed European official.

Sergei Skripal, 66, a former member of Russia's GRU military intelligence service, was arrested in 2004 and sentenced to 13 years in prison for spying for Britain. Mr. Skripal was later released and granted asylum in the UK after the biggest spy swap in history between Russia and the US in 2010. He has lived in the UK since 2010.