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Berezovsky Inquest Set to Resume Near London Berezovsky Inquest Resumes Near London
(about 1 hour later)
LONDON — A British coroner was scheduled to reopen an inquest on Wednesday into the death of Boris A. Berezovsky, a Russian oligarch and adversary of the Kremlin who was found dead a year ago on the floor of a locked bathroom at a mansion outside London. LONDON — A bodyguard working for Boris A. Berezovsky, a Russian oligarch and fierce adversary of the Kremlin who died a year ago, told an inquest on Wednesday that the former billionaire had been “very low” and “depressed” in the months leading up to his death, when his body was found on the floor of a locked bathroom at a mansion west of London.
The hearing, which was expected to take two days, will try to determine the cause of Mr. Berezovsky’s death, thereby ending a year of speculation over the final hours of a man who amassed huge wealth after the fall of Soviet communism and who was once an influential power broker. Avi Navama, the bodyguard, was speaking as the inquest resumed after being adjourned shortly after Mr. Berezovsky’s death in March, 2013.
His body was discovered by an employee at Mr. Berezovsky’s home, set in extensive grounds near Ascot, west of London. At the time, the police said that his death was “consistent with hanging” but that, while there were no signs of a violent struggle, the involvement of another person “cannot be completely eliminated, as tests remain outstanding.”
The inquest was formally opened shortly after his death on March 23, 2013. At the time, the police said that his death was “consistent with hanging” and that, while there were no signs of a violent struggle, the involvement of another person “cannot be completely eliminated, as tests remain outstanding.”
In Britain, inquests are held to establish the cause of death and do not generally ascribe blame.In Britain, inquests are held to establish the cause of death and do not generally ascribe blame.
According to the Press Association news agency in Britain, Mr. Navama said that Mr. Berezovsky’s behavior seemed “different” in the two days before he died, although he had been “very low” and “depressed” for months.
When he last saw Mr. Berezovsky, the night before the tycoon’s body was found, “he looked at me with very low, tired eyes. Like he doesn’t know what to do.”
The testimony echoed assessments by friends of Mr. Berezovsky that he became depressed after his spectacular defeat in a $5.1 billion lawsuit in 2012 against a former business associate, Roman A. Abramovich, a Russian billionaire whose assets include the soccer club Chelsea and a string of businesses, luxury homes and yachts.
The defeat left Mr. Berezovsky with huge legal fees. Perhaps even worse was the damage to his reputation after the judge called Mr. Berezovsky “dishonest,” “unimpressive” and “inherently unreliable,” adding that he had “deluded himself into believing his own version of events.”
In a separate witness statement on Wednesday, Zoe Watson, Mr. Navama’s wife, said that on a trip to Israel after the court case, Mr. Berezovsky “looked broken.”
“His head was in his hands. He was pale and shaking,” the statement said. Both Mr. Navama and his wife said Mr. Berezovsky had spoken of suicide.
Mr. Berezovsky had been one of the most flamboyant of the tycoons who rose to great wealth after the fall of Soviet communism.Mr. Berezovsky had been one of the most flamboyant of the tycoons who rose to great wealth after the fall of Soviet communism.
A former mathematics professor, Mr. Berezovsky maneuvered his way to the heights of power in Boris N. Yeltsin’s Kremlin in the 1990s before a bitter dispute with President Vladimir V. Putin in 2000 led him to flee into self-imposed exile in London.A former mathematics professor, Mr. Berezovsky maneuvered his way to the heights of power in Boris N. Yeltsin’s Kremlin in the 1990s before a bitter dispute with President Vladimir V. Putin in 2000 led him to flee into self-imposed exile in London.
The British capital, which served as the focal point of émigrés seeking Mr. Putin’s ouster, became his base. The British authorities offered him asylum and gave him travel documents in the assumed name of Platon Elenin.The British capital, which served as the focal point of émigrés seeking Mr. Putin’s ouster, became his base. The British authorities offered him asylum and gave him travel documents in the assumed name of Platon Elenin.
Mr. Berezovsky was closely associated with the former K.G.B. officer and whistle-blower Alexander V. Litvinenko, who died in late 2006 after ingesting a radioactive isotope, polonium 210, in a cup of tea at a London hotel.Mr. Berezovsky was closely associated with the former K.G.B. officer and whistle-blower Alexander V. Litvinenko, who died in late 2006 after ingesting a radioactive isotope, polonium 210, in a cup of tea at a London hotel.
British prosecutors have accused another former K.G.B. officer, Andrei K. Lugovoi, of murdering Mr. Litvinenko, but Moscow has refused to extradite him, saying that its constitution forbids such actions against Russian citizens. Mr. Lugovoi denies murdering Mr. Litvinenko.British prosecutors have accused another former K.G.B. officer, Andrei K. Lugovoi, of murdering Mr. Litvinenko, but Moscow has refused to extradite him, saying that its constitution forbids such actions against Russian citizens. Mr. Lugovoi denies murdering Mr. Litvinenko.
While Mr. Berezovsky once ranked among the wealthiest of Russian oligarchs, his fortune shrank, particularly after his spectacular defeat in a $5.1 billion lawsuit in 2012 against a former business associate, Roman A. Abramovich, an ally of Mr. Putin whose many assets include the soccer club Chelsea and a string of businesses, luxury homes and yachts.
The defeat left Mr. Berezovsky with huge legal fees. Perhaps even worse was the damage to his reputation after the judge called Mr. Berezovsky “dishonest,” “unimpressive” and “inherently unreliable,” adding that he had “deluded himself into believing his own version of events.”
After the defeat, his associates said that he had become depressed. But because he had survived several assassination attempts, including a 1994 car bomb in Moscow, speculation over the cause of his death remained intense.