Poison not ruled out in MI6 spy death - Pakistan Observer

LondonForensic scientists cannot establish if a British spy was poisoned before being padlocked in a bag because it took his employers MI6 a week to realise he was missing, an inquest has heard.Forensic expert Denise Stanworth told the hearing in London that we cannot rule out volatile agents in the death of Gareth Williams two years ago as she was asked how reliable toxicology tests can be nine days after death.The decomposition of the body made it impossible to establish exactly which substances were present in the codebreakers body, she said.

Williams boss at MI6, Britains external intelligence agency, earlier apologised to the 31-year-olds family for failing to raise the alarm about his disappearance and conceded the error may have hampered police inquiries.Speaking Thursday from behind a screen, the woman identified only as Witness F offered a full apology for MI6s slow response to Williamss disappearance in August 2010.We are profoundly sorry about what happened, she said.It shouldnt have happened and we recognise that the delay in finding Gareths body has made it even harder for the family to come to terms with his dreadful death and we are truly sorry for that.I also appreciate the delay had some impact on the police investigation.

Williams relatives left the hearing in tears after it was revealed MI6 had failed to realise he was missing.When police finally entered Williams flat in Pimlico, central London, they found his naked body padlocked in a red holdall placed in his bath.Police have been unable to establish a cause of death, though they have unearthed no proof that anyone was with him when he died.AFP