Scotland Yard wants anyone who saw vehicle with registration plate HD09 WAO to get in touch

This article is more than 2 years old

This article is more than 2 years old

Police have made a further appeal for information about the movements of Sergei Skripal in the hours before he and his daughter were found slumped on a bench in Salisbury earlier this month.

Scotland Yard has released a picture of his burgundy red BMW – registration plate HD09 WAO – and wants anyone who saw his car on the morning of 4 March to contact the police.

Skripal, 66, and his daughter, Yulia, 33, remain critically ill in hospital after being poisoned by a military-grade nerve agent.

The Met deputy assistant commissioner Neil Basu said officers needed to better understand their exact movements that morning.

Skripals poisoning: what we know so far Read more

Basu said: “We believe that at around 9.15am on Sunday 4 March, Sergei’s car may have been in the areas of London Road, Churchill Way North and Wilton Road. Then at around 1.30pm it was seen being driven down Devizes Road, towards the town centre.

“We need to establish Sergei and Yulia’s movements during the morning, before they headed to the town centre. Did you see this car, or what you believe was this car, on the day of the incident? We are particularly keen to hear from you if you saw the car before 1.30pm. If you have information, please call the police on 101.”

Anyone who has images or footage that may assist the investigation is asked to upload them to the secure website ukpoliceimageappeal.co.uk.

An updated timeline of events has also been issued:



3 March 2.40pm Yulia Skripal arrives at Heathrow airport on a flight from Russia.



4 March 9.15am Sergei Skripal’s car is seen in the area of London Road, Churchill Way North and Wilton Road.

1.30pm Skripal’s car is seen being driven down Devizes Road, towards the town centre.

1.40pm Skripal and his daughter arrive in Sainsbury’s upper level car park at the Maltings before going to the Mill pub

2.20pm They dine at Zizzi restaurant.

3.35pm They leave the restaurant.

4.15pm Emergency services are called by a member of the public and police arrive at the scene within minutes, where they find the pair extremely ill on a park bench near the restaurant.

Basu said about 400 witnesses had given statements, 762 possible pieces of evidence had been collected and about 4,000 hours of CCTV were being examined.

“This is an extremely challenging and complex investigation and we currently have around 250 exceptionally experienced and dedicated specialist officers from the counter-terrorism network working around the clock on this case,” he said. “They are making good progress in what is a painstaking investigation that is likely to be ongoing for weeks, if not months.”

A police presence at various sites across Salisbury and in Dorset would remain as the investigation continued and Basu said Public Health England had advised that the risk to the public was low.

“I would like to reassure anyone who may be concerned by the continued presence of officers wearing specialist protective clothing that they are wearing this as a precaution and that it is not an indication of an increased risk,” he said.