MOSCOW. April 17 (Interfax) - The Russian Prosecutor General's Office is considering the opening of a criminal case over the hole found in the hull of the Soyuz MS-09 manned spacecraft, agency official Dmitry Demeshin said.
"We are considering the opening of a criminal case in order to improve the quality of examinations," Demeshin said on the video channel Efir on Wednesday.
He did not say who was guilty or how the incident might have happened.
"We have been searching for the exact location of this hole. I'd rather not say anything in order to avoid speculations on who did what and when. If we could be certain, we would say, of course," Demeshin said.
The work is continuing, he said.
"The evaluations involve plenty of people: designers, investigative subjects, executives of the corporation, prosecutors, and detectives," Demeshin said.
On August 30, 2018, an air leak was detected in the ISS. The crew checked every compartment of the Soyuz and found a hole. Air was leaking from the habitation module, not the landing capsule, which meant a safe return to the Earth would still be possible.
Russian cosmonauts applied a sealant to the hole and covered it with patches. An ultrasound scan showed that the leak had been stopped. Specialists are now trying to establish the hole's origin.
Russian cosmonauts, who went on a spacewalk on December 11, took samples of the sealant and the micrometeorite shield. The samples were brought to Earth to be studied.
Rogozin said on January 10 that experts would find out the causes of the incident soon.
Various theories have been suggested as to the hole's origin, among them a manufacturing defect, deliberate damage, or collision with a micro-meteorite or space debris.