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Coroner: Spy likely slain by mystery killer

By , Associated Press | May 2, 2012 09:49 AM

Even after a coroner’s verdict, it remains a mystery: A naked spy found dead in a locked bag, lurid details of a kinky sex life and allegations that someone in Britain’s spy agencies may have been involved in his death.

A British coroner ruled Wednesday that another person was likely involved in Gareth Williams’ death — a finding that puts more pressure police to uncover the cyberwarfare expert’s killer and continue to investigate possibilities that include whether he could have died in a sex game gone awry or in a more sinister scenario that involved his counterterrorism work.

In Britain, coroners are asked to investigate unexplained deaths, and their findings can often carry weight as police investigations proceed.

Although Coroner Fiona Wilcox said it was unlikely that the death of Williams, 31, will ever be “satisfactorily explained,’’ she said the spy was likely killed either by suffocation or poisoning in a “criminally meditated act.’’ She also said it was possible that someone from one of Britain’s spy agencies was involved.

Williams, described as an introverted math genius, worked for Britain’s secret eavesdropping service GCHQ. But he was attached to the MI6 foreign spy agency when his remains were found in the bathtub at his London apartment on Aug. 16, 2010, just a few days after returning from a trip to the United States.

Forensic experts found some 20,000 thousand pounds ($32,000) worth of luxury women’s clothing, shoes and wigs in his apartment. Police also discovered that he had visited bondage and sadomasochism websites, including some related to claustrophilia — a desire for confinement in enclosed spaces.

William’s landlord testified during the coroner’s hearing that she once found him handcuffed to his bed. She said he had appeared embarrassed after asking for help.



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