The British diplomat who ran over Russian spy in bizarre Moscow car accident



A British diplomat in Moscow knocked over a pedestrian who turned out to be a senior Russian spy.

The accident threatens to reopen a simmering diplomatic row between London and Moscow which has seen British officials intimidated and institutions closed.

Andrew Sheridan, 35, told police he was driving his official Ford Mondeo on General Dorokhov Street in western Moscow when the pedestrian walked out from behind a parked car, giving him no time to stop.

Driver: Envoy Andrew Sheridan, who knocked over a Russian spy, and his wife Ekaterina

The Russians later revealed that the man he hit, causing head injuries and a broken leg, was a colonel in the FSB, the successor to the KGB.

He was named as Alexander T, 38, apparently to help to hide his identity. He works for an elite academy training agents for frontline duties, including securing borders.

It is understood that Mr Sheridan was unhurt in Monday evening’s accident, in which he was driving a car with diplomatic number plates.

Wife: Ekaterina, who also works for the British Council in Moscow

‘He waited for the road police and gave a full explanation, insisting he could not see the pedestrian in time because he was hidden by a parked car,’ said one account.

Details of the crash, including photos, were posted on an official news agency’s website. But just hours later, all trace had been removed from the site, without explanation.

Mr Sheridan is deputy director of the British Council in Moscow, which Russian President Dmitry Medvedev has called a front for ‘a nest of spies’, something the Foreign Office denies.

The council, which promotes British culture and is headed by former Labour leader Lord Kinnock, has been in a bitter feud with the Kremlin, part of the worsening of relations following dissident Alexander Litvinenko’s poisoning in London in 2006.

Council branches in St Petersburg and Ekaterinburg have been shut over alleged tax irregularities.

Britain refused to abide by the Kremlin edict until its Russian staff were ordered to attend FSB interviews, sometimes in the middle of the night, which the Foreign Office denounced as intimidation.

Last week, an appeal court overruled a judge’s decision to partly cancel a £2.3million tax bill the Kremlin claims the British Council owes. The car crash could set back attempts by Britain’s new ambassador, Ann Pringle, to mend fences, allowing council offices to reopen.

In January, Lord Kinnock’s son Stephen, then director of the council in St Petersburg, was accused of ignoring a ‘no entry’ sign by the armed traffic police. He refused to be breathalysed, citing diplomatic immunity, and was given a ticket for a motoring offence.

Mr Sheridan also has diplomatic immunity and cannot be prosecuted. His wife Ekaterina, 31, also works for the British Council in Moscow. She went to a Red Army military school in Cuba and Manchester University.

A Foreign Office spokeswoman said: ‘This was an unfortunate traffic accident. I don’t think you need to read more into it.’ The FSB yesterday refused to comment.