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Crimes involving radioactive substances

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Crimes involving radioactive substances
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This is a list of criminal (or arguably, allegedly, or potentially criminal) acts involving radioactive substances. Inclusion in this list does not necessarily imply that anyone involved was guilty of a crime.

These crimes include both acts where a person intended to cause harm to another and also acts where a person acted with "reckless indifference" to the safety and welfare of others. Many of these "reckless indifference" acts involve breaches of health and safety laws.

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Nuclear crime
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Use of alpha emitters for murder/attempted murder[edit]

In 1974, nuclear material whistleblower (WP) Karen Silkwood (WP) was exposed to high levels of radioactivity multiple times in the time before her death. In Germany, a nuclear reprocessing plant worker attempted to murder his ex-wife with plutonium. In 2006, former Wikipedia:KGB officer Wikipedia:Alexander Litvinenko died in London, from his exposure to the short-lived Wikipedia:alpha emitter Wikipedia:polonium-210; many theories exist as to the circumstances behind the poisoning.

Karen Silkwood[edit]

High levels of radioactivity found in Karen Silkwood apartment in 1974 evidence that this method may have been used to attempt to kill her, to prevent her presenting her safety concerns at the Kerr-McGee’s plutonium fuels production plant where she worked in Crescent, Oklahoma.[1]

Low level nuclear waste[edit]

See Low level nuclear waste. EVERYTHING that workers use to protect themselves from radiation, itself becomes irradiated and becomes low-level nuclear waste. The sheer volume of it is a problem, which is why I suspect nuke industry people have kept that out of the Wikipedia version of the article: Wikipedia:Low-level nuclear waste

In the German case, a man attempted to poison his ex-wife with plutonium-irradiated Wikipedia:low-level nuclear waste stolen from WAK (Wiederaufbereitungsanlage Wikipedia:Karlsruhe), a small scale reprocessing plant where he worked. He did not steal a large amount of plutonium, just some rags used for wiping surfaces and a small amount of liquid waste. The man was eventually sent to Wikipedia:prison.[2][3] At least two people (besides the criminal) were contaminated by the plutonium.[4] Two flats in Wikipedia:Landau in the Wikipedia:Rhineland-Palatinate were contaminated, and had to be cleaned at a cost of two million Wikipedia:euro.[5] Photographs of the case and details of other nuclear crimes have been presented by a worker at the Wikipedia:Institute for Transuranium Elements.[6]

A review of the forensic matters associated with stolen plutonium has been published.[7]

The Litvinenko murder[edit]

During Litvinenko's medical treatment more than one hypothesis existed as to the cause of Litvinenko's ill health. The first theory was that it was a normal case of Wikipedia:thallium poisoning. Later, it was suggested that a radioactive isotope of thallium had been used. The third and final hypothesis (following Litvinenko's death) was that he had been poisoned with a radioactive isotope of Wikipedia:polonium. All the evidence now indicates that Russian-made polonium was used to kill Litvinenko.

Thallium (initial hypothesis)[edit]

Scotland Yard initially investigated claims that Litvinenko was poisoned with thallium. Preliminary tests, as reported, appeared to confirm the presence of the poison, which is colourless, odourless, and completely water-soluble. Thallium was once a common ingredient in rat poison, but its use was restricted in the 1970s and it is now difficult to obtain. Litvinenko was said to have ingested a potentially fatal dose.[8][9] Among the distinctive effects of thallium poisoning are hair loss and damage to peripheral nerves,[10] and a photograph of Litvinenko in hospital, released to the media on his behalf,[11] indeed showed his hair to have fallen out. Litvinenko attributed his survival to his cardiovascular fitness and swift medical treatment.

Radioactive thallium[edit]

It was then suggested that a Wikipedia:radioactive Wikipedia:isotope of thallium might have been used.[12]

Wikipedia:Thallium, in large amount, can be a poison in itself, whether radioactive or not. The 201Tl isotope of thallium, in trace amounts, is used routinely around the world for medical procedures such as myocardial scintigraphy.

Dr. Amit Nathwani, one of Litvinenko's physicians, reported: "His symptoms are slightly odd for thallium poisoning, and the chemical levels of thallium we were able to detect are not the kind of levels you'd see in toxicity."[13] Hours before his death, three unidentified circular-shaped objects were found in his stomach via an Wikipedia:X-ray scan.[14] It is thought these objects were almost certainly shadows caused by the presence of Wikipedia:Prussian blue, the treatment he had been given for thallium poisoning.[15]

Following a deterioration of his condition on 20 November, Litvinenko was moved into Wikipedia:intensive care. It was reported that his doctors had given him a 50/50 chance of survival over the three- to four-week period following the poisoning.[10]

News reports at this stage kept an open mind on the cause of Litvinenko's condition, with Wikipedia:Scotland Yard considering whether the poison could have been self-administered.[11]

Very few medical doctors have experience with radiological illness or injury. Inability to recognize the correct cause of the illness would most likely have lead to a cause of death such as idiopathic pancytopenia.[16]

Polonium-210[edit]

Shortly after his death, the Wikipedia:BBC reported that preliminary tests on the body of Alexander Litvinenko have indicated that he was poisoned with the radioactive isotope polonium-210 which was most likely inhaled or ingested, and traces of which were found at three London locations: in his Wikipedia:Muswell Hill home, at a hotel in Wikipedia:Grosvenor Square, and at the sushi restaurant where he had met Wikipedia:Mario Scaramella.[17][18] The UK's Wikipedia:Health Protection Agency confirmed that they were investigating the risks to people who have been in contact with him.[19]

Details of the radiological threat posed by polonium-210[edit]

At a committed effective dose equivalent (CEDE) of 5.14 x 10−7 Wikipedia:sieverts per Wikipedia:becquerel (1.9 x 103 mrem/µCi) for ingested 210Po and a specific activity of 1.66 x 1014 Bq/g (4.49 x 103 Ci/g)[20] the amount of material required to produce a lethal dose of Wikipedia:radiation poisoning would be only about 0.12 micrograms (1.17 x 107g). The CEDE is normally used for expressing how likely internal exposure is to cause cancer, as the effective half life in humans of polonium is 37 days and the time between the poisoning and the death was short then the dose suffered by Alexander Litvinenko per unit of activity would have been lower than the CEDE. The Wikipedia:biological halflife is 30 to 50 days in humans.[21]

Criminal use of X-ray equipment and other radiation technology by secret police[edit]

Some former Wikipedia:East German dissidents claim that the Wikipedia:Stasi used Wikipedia:X-ray equipment to induce Wikipedia:cancer in Wikipedia:political prisoners.[22]

Similarly, some anti-Castro activists claim that the Cuban secret police sometimes used radioactive isotopes to induce cancer in "adversaries they wished to destroy with as little notice as possible".[23] Planting a radioactive isotope in the chair in which an enemy regularly sat, or in an often-worn jacket, or in a sofa cushion, or even in an automobile seat likely resulted in a fatal cancerous growth. In 1997, the Cuban expatriate columnist Wikipedia:Carlos Alberto Montaner called this method "the Bulgarian Treatment", after its alleged use by the Wikipedia:Bulgarian secret police.[24]


Atomic spies[edit]

Main article: Wikipedia:Nuclear espionage

A number of people have been arrested and convicted of Wikipedia:spying with regards to nuclear matters. For example see the cases of Wikipedia:Klaus Fuchs, Wikipedia:Theodore Hall, Wikipedia:David Greenglass, Wikipedia:Ethel and Julius Rosenberg, Wikipedia:Harry Gold, Wikipedia:Mordechai Vanunu and Wikipedia:Wen Ho Lee.

Improper transport[edit]

The transport of radioactive materials is controlled by a series of Wikipedia:criminal laws and is also covered by civil law. In several cases radioactive materials have been transported incorrectly, leading to exposure (or potential exposure) of humans to radiation.

The bus and the radiography set[edit]

Transport accidents can cause a release of radioactivity resulting in contamination or shielding to be damaged resulting in direct irradiation. In Wikipedia:Cochabamba a defective gamma Wikipedia:radiography set containing a Wikipedia:iridium-192 source was transported in a passenger bus as cargo.[25] The gamma source was outside the shielding, and it irradiated some bus passengers. The dose suffered by the passengers was initially estimated as being between 20 mGy and 2.77 Gy (Gy = Wikipedia:Gray (unit)), but when the accident was reconstructed by placing Wikipedia:dosimeters on seats before placing a similar radiography source in the cargo hold of the bus, the dose estimated by this experiment was no more than 500 mGy for the most exposed passenger.

As an indication of what these doses mean, the LD50(median lethal dose, or lethal dose for 50% of subjects) in men is ~4 Gy in a single dose. However, doses can reach as high as 80 Gy if administered fractionally over several days (as in radiotherapy treatments where doses are often delivered in fractions of 1 or 2 Gy/day).

AEA technology and the medical source[edit]

March 11, 2002 – A 2.5 tonne radio therapy machine containing a 60Co gamma source was transported from Cookridge Hospital, Wikipedia:Leeds, England, to Wikipedia:Sellafield with defective shielding (a hole should have had a bolt-like plug screwed into it, but it was left open). As the gamma ray beam passing through the hole was directed from the package downwards into the ground, it is not thought that this event caused any injury or disease in either a human or an animal. This event was treated in a serious manner because the Wikipedia:defense in depth type of protection for the source had been eroded. If the container had been tipped over in a road crash then a strong beam of Wikipedia:gamma rays would have been directed in a direction where it would be likely to irradiate humans. The company responsible for the transport of the source, Wikipedia:AEA Technology plc, was fined £250,000 by a British Wikipedia:court.

Kramatorsk incident[edit]

Main article: Wikipedia:Kramatorsk nuclear poisoning incident

In 1989, a small capsule containing highly radioactive isotope Wikipedia:cesium-137 was found inside the concrete wall in an apartment building in Wikipedia:Kramatorsk, Wikipedia:Ukraine. It is believed that the capsule, originally a part of a measurement device, was lost sometime during late 1970s and ended up mixed with gravel used to construct that building in 1980. By the time the capsule was discovered, 6 residents of the building died from Wikipedia:leukemia and 17 more received varying doses of radiation.[26]

Trafficking in radioactive and nuclear materials[edit]

Information reported to the Wikipedia:International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) shows "a persistent problem with the illicit trafficking in nuclear and other radioactive materials, thefts, losses and other unauthorized activities".[27]

From 1993 to 2006, the IAEA confirmed 1080 illicit trafficking incidents reported by participating countries. Of the 1080 confirmed incidents, 275 incidents involved unauthorized possession and related criminal activity, 332 incidents involved theft or loss of nuclear or other radioactive materials, 398 incidents involved other unauthorized activities, and in 75 incidents the reported information was not sufficient to determine the category of incident. Several hundred additional incidents have been reported in various open sources, but are not yet confirmed.[27][28]

Quack medicine[edit]

In the early 20th century a series of "medical" products which contained radioactive elements were marketed to the general public. These are included in this discussion of nuclear/radioactive crime because the sale and production of these products is now covered by criminal law. Because some perfectly good radioactive medical products exist, (such as Wikipedia:iodine-131 for the treatment of cancer), it is important to note that sale of products similar to those described below is criminal, as they are unlicensed medicines.

Wikipedia:Radithor, a well known Wikipedia:patent medicine/Wikipedia:snake oil, is possibly the best known example of Wikipedia:radioactive quackery. It consisted of triple distilled water containing at a minimum 1 microWikipedia:curie each of the Wikipedia:radium 226 and 228 isotopes.[29]

Radithor was manufactured from 1918 - 1928 by the Bailey Radium Laboratories, Inc., of Wikipedia:East Orange, New Jersey. The head of the laboratories was listed as Dr. William J. A. Bailey, not a medical doctor.[30] It was advertised as "A Cure for the Living Dead"[31] as well as "Perpetual Sunshine".

These radium elixirs were marketed similar to the way opiates were peddled to the masses with Wikipedia:laudanum an age earlier, and electrical cure-alls during the same time period such as the Wikipedia:Prostate Warmer.[32]

The eventual death of the socialite Wikipedia:Eben Byers from Radithor consumption and the associated Wikipedia:radiation poisoning led to the strengthening of the Food and Drug Administration's powers and the demise of most radiation quack cures.

Associated links[edit]

Theft of radioactive sources[edit]

In several cases radioactive sources has been stolen during attempts by Wikipedia:scrap metal workers to steal scrap metal, this results in what is known as a lost source accident. In addition in most part of the world it is a Wikipedia:criminal act to lose (or otherwise dispose of in an unapproved manner) a radioactive source. Some objects by virtue of their low level of radioactivity (such as smoke alarms) can be placed in the normal domestic waste but as a rule radioactive waste must be disposed of as hazardous waste.

A lost source accident[33][34] is one where a Wikipedia:radioactive object is lost or Wikipedia:stolen. Such objects often end up in the scrap metal industry, as people mistake them for harmless bits of metal.[35] The International Atomic Energy Agency has provided guides for Wikipedia:scrap metal collectors on what a sealed source might look like.[36][37] The best known example of this type of event is the Wikipedia:Goiânia accident, in Wikipedia:Brazil.

While some lost source accidents have not involved the Wikipedia:scrap metal industry, they are still good examples of the likely scale and scope of a lost source accident. For example, the Wikipedia:Soviet army left sources behind in Lilo, Georgia. Another case occurred at Wikipedia:Yanango, Wikipedia:Peru where a Wikipedia:radiography source was lost and at Wikipedia:Gilan, Wikipedia:Iran a radiography source harmed a Wikipedia:welder.[38]

Radioactive sources have a wide range of uses in medicine and industry, it is common for the design (and nature) of a source to be tailored to the application so it is impossible to state with confidence what the "typical" source looks like or contains. For instance Wikipedia:antistatic devices include beta and alpha emitters. For instance Wikipedia:polonium containing devices have been used to eliminate Wikipedia:static electricity such devices include paint spraying equipment.[39] An overview of the gamma sources used for Wikipedia:radiography can be seen at Wikipedia:Radiographic equipment, it is reasonable to consider this to be a good overview of small to moderate gamma sources.

Tammiku, Estonia[edit]

In Wikipedia:Tammiku (Wikipedia:Estonia) a group of three men were responsible for a similar incident: They burgled a Wikipedia:radioactive waste store to steal Wikipedia:scrap metal. One of them picked up a metal pipe and placed it in his pocket. This metal pipe was a very strong 137Cs source which gave a high localised dose to the man’s leg (1800 Sv local, 4 Sv whole body). He was admitted a few days later to Wikipedia:hospital where he claimed to have had an accident in the woods. He died shortly after as a result of whole body irradiation from the source. Before going to the hospital, he left the source in his house where it then irradiated other members of his family and his Wikipedia:dog (which died as a result). His son suffered a localised radiation burn (Local dose of 25 Sv, whole body 3.6 Gy) which resulted in the Wikipedia:amputation of Wikipedia:fingers, when he inadvertently handled the source when looking for tools to repair his Wikipedia:bicycle. When a medical doctor saw these burns it was understood that an ionising radiation accident was in progress. The man's wife got a 500 mSv dose while his mother got a 2.25 Sv dose.[40][41][42]

It is interesting to note that the scrap metal industry was involved twice in this incident: the caesium source being originally found in a shipment of scrap metal which was brought into the country (at that point it was thought to be a 60Co source based on half thickness measurements). The source was placed in the radioactive waste store for safekeeping, which was subsequently entered by the men who were intent on stealing Wikipedia:scrap metal.

Samut Prakarn[edit]

At Wikipedia:Samut Prakarn a 15.7 TBq (425 Ci) Wikipedia:cobalt-60 Wikipedia:teletherapy source was lost,[43] attempts were made by some scrap metal workers to recycle the metal. During this time humans were subject to irradiation by the source.

It was found that at the edge of the scrap yard the dose rate was about 1 to 10 mSv hr-1. The exact location of the source in the scrap yard was determined using a Wikipedia:fluorescent screen which acted as a Wikipedia:scintillator. This was held on the end of a long pole.


Investigation[edit]

For an overview please see [2].

Nature of the radioactive source[edit]

Intensity against photon energy for three isotopes

By means of radiometric methods such as Wikipedia:Gamma spectroscopy (or a method using a chemical separation followed by an activity measurement with a non-energy-dispersive counter), it is possible to measure the concentrations of Wikipedia:radioisotopes and to distinguish one from another. Below is a graph drawn from databooks of how the gamma spectra of three different isotopes which relate to this case using an energy-dispersive counter such as a Wikipedia:germanium semiconductor detector or a Wikipedia:sodium iodide crystal (doped with thallium) scintillation counter. In this chart the line width of the spectral lines is about 1 keV and no noise is present, in real life background noise would be present and depending on the detector the line width would be larger so making it harder to make an identification and measurement of the isotope. In biological/medical work it is common to use the natural 40K present in all tissues/body fluids as a check of the equipment and as an internal standard.

See also[edit]

References[edit]

  1. ↑ "The Karen Silkwood Story: What We Know at Los Alamos" Los Alamos Science issue #23. November 23, 1995
  2. ↑ Welcome. World Information Service on Energy.. URL accessed on 2006-12-05.
  3. ↑ Germany: Plutonium soup as a murder weapon?. World Information Service on Energy. URL accessed on 2006-12-05.
  4. ↑ English Edition. German News. URL accessed on 2006-12-05. Template:Dead link
  5. ↑ Clean-up of a GIGA-BQ-PU contamination of two apartments. (pdf) Hagen Hoefer. URL accessed on 2006-12-05.
  6. ↑ Ray, Ian Nuclear Forensic Science and Illicit Trafficking. (pdf) Wikipedia:Institute for Transuranium Elements. URL accessed on 2006-12-05.
  7. ↑ Maria Wallenius, Klaus Lützenkirchen, Klaus Mayer, Ian Ray, Laura Aldave de las Heras, Maria Betti, Omer Cromboom, Marc Hild, Brian Lynch, Adrian Nicholl, et al., Journal of Alloys and Compounds, In press doi:10.1016/j.jallcom.2006.10.161
  8. ↑ Townsend, Mark Poisoning of Russian agent raises fears of UK vendetta. Wikipedia:Guardian. URL accessed on 2006-11-21.
  9. ↑ Murphy, Kim Who poisoned a former KGB agent?. Wikipedia:Los Angeles Times. URL accessed on 2006-11-21.
  10. ↑ 10.0 10.1 Ex-spy's '50% chance of survival'. Wikipedia:Guardian. URL accessed on 2006-11-21.
  11. ↑ 11.0 11.1 Poisoned former KGB man dies in hospital. Wikipedia:The Guardian. URL accessed on 2006-11-24.
  12. ↑ "London doctor: Radioactive poison may be in ex-Russian spy". Wikipedia:USA Today. 21 November 2006. http://www.usatoday.com/news/world/2006-11-20-spy_x.htm?csp=34. Retrieved 2006-11-24. </li>
  13. ↑ "Doctors in dark on poisoned ex-spy". Wikipedia:CNN. 21 November 2006. http://www.cnn.com/2006/WORLD/europe/11/21/uk.spypoisoned/index.html. Retrieved 2006-11-22. </li>
  14. ↑ Spanish Murió Alexander Litvinenko, el ex espía ruso que fue envenenado en Londres. El Tiempo. URL accessed on 2006-11-24. Template:Dead link
  15. ↑ "Ex-spy's condition deteriorates". Wikipedia:BBC. 24 November 2006. http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/6176004.stm. Retrieved 2006-11-24. </li>
  16. ↑ Idiopathic aplastic anemia
  17. ↑ Hall, Ben Polonium 210 found at Berezovsky's office. Wikipedia:MSNBC. URL accessed on 2006-12-01. Template:Dead link
  18. ↑ "Radiation tests after spy death". Wikipedia:BBC. 24 November 2006. http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/6180682.stm. Retrieved 2006-11-24. </li>
  19. ↑ Health Protection Agency press release. HPA. URL accessed on 2006-11-24.
  20. ↑ Nuclide Safety Data Sheet Polonium – 210. (pdf) North Carolina Chapter of the Health Physics Society. URL accessed on 2006-12-07.
  21. ↑ Energy Citations Database. Wikipedia:Office of Scientific and Technical Information. URL accessed on 2006-12-07.
  22. ↑ "Dissidents say Stasi gave them cancer". Wikipedia:BBC. 25 May 1999. http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/europe/352461.stm. Retrieved 2006-12-07. </li>
  23. ↑ Stride, Jonathan T. Castro said to be using cancer instigating weapons for warfare. Wikipedia:Florida International University. URL accessed on 2006-12-07.
  24. ↑ Montaner, Carlos Alberto The Bulgarian Treatment. Firmas Press. URL accessed on 2006-12-07.
  25. ↑ The Radiological Accident in Cochabamba. (pdf) Wikipedia:International Atomic Energy Agency. URL accessed on 2006-12-07.
  26. ↑ Security and Nonproliferation, Kyiv, 2005
  27. ↑ 27.0 27.1 IAEA Illicit Trafficking Database (ITDB) p. 3.
  28. ↑ Wikipedia:Yukiya Amano. Time to better secure radioactive materials. Washington Post.
  29. ↑ Radithor (ca. 1918).. Wikipedia:Oak Ridge Associated Universities. URL accessed on 2006-12-07.
  30. ↑ , ({{{year}}}). "U/A," Wikipedia:Literary Digest, {{{volume}}}, .
  31. ↑ Radium Cures. Museum of Questionable Medical Devices (Wikipedia:Science Museum of Minnesota). Archived from source 2006-11-10. URL accessed on 2006-12-07.
  32. ↑ Prostate Cures. Museum of Questionable Medical Devices (Wikipedia:Science Museum of Minnesota). Archived from source 2006-12-06. URL accessed on 2006-12-07.
  33. ↑ Ortiz, Pedro; et al. Lost & found dangers. (pdf) Wikipedia:IAEA. URL accessed on 2006-12-08.
  34. ↑ Discus, Greta Joy USA Perspectives - Safety and security of radioactive sources. (pdf) Wikipedia:IAEA. URL accessed on 2006-12-08.
  35. ↑ Smith, D M Radioactive material in scrap metal - the UK approach. The Society for Radiological Protection. URL accessed on 2006-12-08.
  36. ↑ Sealed radioactive sources. (pdf) Wikipedia:IAEA. URL accessed on 2006-12-08.
  37. ↑ Reducing Risks in the Scrap Metal Industry. (pdf) Wikipedia:IAEA. URL accessed on 2006-12-08.
  38. ↑ The Radiological Accident in Gilan. (pdf) Wikipedia:IAEA. URL accessed on 2006-12-08.
  39. ↑ "College breaches radioactive regulations". Wikipedia:BBC. 12 March 2002. http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/1868414.stm. Retrieved 2006-12-08. </li>
  40. ↑ Tammiku stolen source, 1994. Wm. Robert Johnston. URL accessed on 2006-12-08.
  41. ↑ The radiological accident in Tammiku. (pdf) Wikipedia:IAEA. URL accessed on 2006-12-08.
  42. ↑ Ortiz, P; Oresegun, M; Wheatley, J Lessons from Major Radiation Accidents. (pdf) Wikipedia:IAEA. URL accessed on 2006-12-08.
  43. ↑ The Radiological Accident in Samut Prakarn. (pdf) Wikipedia:IAEA. URL accessed on 2006-12-08.

    44. </ol>

External links[edit]

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