The murder of crusading journalist Anna Politkovskaya "has been solved," a senior investigator told Politkovskaya's colleagues in an interview in the Novaya Gazeta newspaper this week, as Politkovskaya, who was gunned down one year ago last Sunday, was commemorated in Russia and Europe. The investigator added that Politkovskaya was killed for political reasons.
"[The murder] has been solved," senior investigator Petros Garibyan replied when asked if authorities, criticized by the opposition on claims that they were failing to find the culprits, were ever going to solve the contract-style killing. "But it's another issue of identifying the entire chain: from the mastermind to the killer - and to prepare for the courts conclusive evidence of their guilt."
In the interview, which was published Monday, Garibyan added that considerable headway in the investigation had been made only recently, with a series of arrests that started August 15. In September, investigators began questioning the suspects.
Ten people have been arrested, while 11 have been charged. Several Chechens are in custody. "We have not charged the killer yet, but we know who he is."
Indeed, Garibyan suggested there might be a link between the perpetrators of Politkovskaya's murder and those who had killed Russian Forbes editor Paul Klebnikov in July 2004.
"The same people who were witnesses or contacts of witnesses and suspects in Klebnikov's case have come to the focus of our attention," Novaya Gazeta quoted Garibyan as saying.
"However, it's too early to talk about a clear connection between these two murders," he said.
One of the first officials to do so, Garibyan described Politkovskaya's murder as "connected to Politkovskaya's professional activities, and politically motivated. If we talk about Anna's journalistic activity, we face politics, when we talk about the political version we can't avoid professional activities, because Anna was a journalist who wrote about critical political issues."
Politkovskaya investigated claims of atrocities against civilians in Chechnya, while Klebnikov wrote about Chechen organized crime groups. Two Chechens were charged in the Klebnikov murder, but they were acquitted in 2006. Despite an order for a retrial from the Supreme Court, the trial has been suspended because one of the defendants has not been showing up in court.
Garibyan pointed out in the interview that Politkovskaya's colleagues at Novaya Gazeta were very helpful and cooperative with the investigators.
The paper's editor, Sergei Sokolov, told The Moscow News that he was generally happy with the investigators' work with the paper. He described their joint efforts as "fruitful and mutually helpful."
Sunday, October 7, marked one year since Politkovskaya was gunned down outside her apartment. Her supporters, many of whom oppose the Kremlin, held vigils on Sunday in Moscow,
St. Petersburg, and throughout Europe. In Moscow, the liberal opposition, including former Prime Minister Mikhail Kasyanov, held a rally in her honor. There were differing accounts as to how many people attended, with most Russian media putting the turnout at about 500, while Western news agencies, citing organizers, said that some 2,000 were on hand.
