MOSCOW. Nov 18 (Interfax) - Russia's Federal Security Service (FSB) has found no grounds for any procedural decisions in response to a request from the Anti-corruption Foundation (FBK) founded by Russian opposition politician Alexei Navalny to open a criminal case to investigate an instance of the development and manufacture of chemical weapons in connection with Navalny's alleged poisoning, the FBK legal department said in a statement.
"The Investigative Department of the FSB of Russia has examined your application [...]. We inform you that at present, there are no grounds for the agencies of the Federal Security Service to adopt any procedural decisions in connection with the facts that you have indicated due to those being checked by another law enforcement agency," the FSB said in response to the application from the FBK.
The FBK earlier filed a request with the FSB to launch criminal proceedings under Article 355 of the Russian Criminal Code (developing, manufacturing, stockpiling, acquiring, or selling any weapons of mass destruction). The FBK considers Navalny's poisoning with a Novichok-type nerve agent reason to open a criminal case. German medics insist that Navalny was poisoned with the nerve agent.
Navalny supporters have lodged an appeal with Moscow's Lefortovsky Court, asking the court to assess the FSB's response to their application.