23:24, 3 November 2006

Detectives are on track of Politkovskaya's killer

The investigators who are engaged in fact-finding of the murder of Anna Politkovskaya, observer of the "Novaya Gazeta" newspaper, have got on the trail of a supposed killer. The suspected criminal was exposed by the Makarov pistol thrown out by him in the scene of the crime, the media "Tvoj Den" (Your Day) writes.

A new round of investigation into Politkovskaya's murder started after the results of the ballistic examination became known of the Makarov pistol that was left in the place of the crime, the NEWSru.com writes. "It looks like the killer was not a professional. His shooting lacked grouping. Additionally, he missed from the distance of one-two metres, and one of the bullets got into the wall of the elevator," the investigators told.

The results of the ballistic examination showed that the pistol that killed Anna Politkovskaya belonged earlier to a fighter of one of ethnic criminal groups of Moscow and has a "reach history." The detectives believe that the Makarov pistol ("PM") left in the crime scene will help to bring them to the track of the perpetrator.