French Police Say Mercury Spill in Car of Russian Lawyer was Accidental

A Russian human rights lawyer wasn’t intentionally poisoned, French police have concluded.

Investigators believe that mercury found in the car of lawyer Karinna Moskalenko was from a thermometer that broke accidentally, the New York Times reports. The spill occurred before Moskalenko bought the car.

Moskalenko had told a Russian radio station she believes the mercury was put in her car to send a message. She became so ill earlier this month that she was unable to attend a hearing into the death of her slain client, outspoken journalist Anna Politkovskaya.