New York Times : Britain: Inquest Into Spy’s Death

Wednesday, September 01, 2010

Britain: Inquest Into Spy’s Death

By Ravi Somaiya | September 1, 2010

The body of a British spy, found dead in his apartment in London last month, had been padlocked into a gym bag and put in the bathtub, officials said Wednesday at the inquest into the man’s death, but how he died is not yet certain. The Westminster coroner, Dr. Paul Knapman, said that the body of the missing intelligence officer, Gareth Williams, 30, above, was discovered in an “advanced state of decay” on Aug. 23. A pathologist found that Mr. Williams had not been stabbed or shot, and that there were no obvious signs of strangulation, said a spokeswoman for the Westminster Coroner’s Court. A post-mortem exam last week failed to establish a conclusive cause of death. The inquest has been adjourned until next Wednesday.