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SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 22, 2009
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6

Journo Who Broke Russian Pirate Story Flees Country

Mikhail Voitenko says he knows more than he can tell about Arctic Sea 's cargo

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(Newser) – The Russian journalist who was first to report on the disappearance of the Arctic Sea cargo ship has fled the country after receiving threats, the Guardian reports. Mikhail Voitenko, who speculated that the ship may have been carrying a secret cargo of weapons or "something much more expensive and dangerous," says he received a call warning him that people were out for revenge and to leave the country.

Voitenko says the caller told him he was "stepping on the heels of some serious people." The ship, recovered by the Russian Navy off the coast of Africa last month, was listed as having a cargo of Finnish timber, but some experts suspect it may have been carrying missiles bound for Iran or Syria and was intercepted by Israeli forces. "I know more than I can say, but you know what. I am afraid," said Voitenki.

Mikhail Voitenko, the editor of the online Maritime Bulletin-Sovfracht, speak to the press in Moscow last month with a big screen showing a picture of the Arctic Sea freighter.
Mikhail Voitenko, the editor of the online Maritime Bulletin-Sovfracht, speak to the press in Moscow last month with a big screen showing a picture of the Arctic Sea freighter.   (AP Photo/Alexander Zemlianichenko)
Mikhail Voitenko, the editor of the online Maritime Bulletin-Sovfracht, speaks to the press in Moscow.
Mikhail Voitenko, the editor of the online Maritime Bulletin-Sovfracht, speaks to the press in Moscow.   (AP Photo/Alexander Zemlianichenko)
The cargo ship the Arctic Sea.
The cargo ship the Arctic Sea.   (AP Photo/Pekka Laakso/Lehitukuva)
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6 comments
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riffran
Sep 4, 09 5:11 AM CDT
beat feet dude GTFO while still alive Reply
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+4
Kookey90
Sep 4, 09 6:58 AM CDT
You play the game, you must be prepared to pay the price - Happy sailings dude and, Oh by the way, no Pulitzer for you. Reply
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-7
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Revenge_of_Mint
Sep 4, 09 11:10 PM CDT
So you seek to expose truth (already hard for a journalist because you risk loseing your job if your story isnt appealing to news corp) so you deserve to die?
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JoeQ
Sep 4, 09 9:51 AM CDT
I wonder if we'll ever get the whole story here. If the pirates were really commandos and the cargo was really missiles bound for Iran, were they disabled? Were any of the commandos captured by the Russians? If so, there was some serious clandestine bravery going on. It is thanks to Voitenko and the principle of a free press that we know anything at all. Reply
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BurgerKing
Sep 4, 09 11:54 AM CDT
So... is it Voitenko or Tenki? Reply
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