To me, it seems as if the British authorities were caught on the hop, as if someone lower down the hierarchy gave Yulia a phone to use and information was then released into the public domain prematurely.
Like others, I am struck by the apparently simultaneous collapse of both father and daughter, given all the variables involved. That neither seemed to gradually get worse from the time of exposure and the abruptness of the onset of symptoms after such a delay is strange.
I suppose that the easiest explanation is the synchronised collapse was just a weird coincidence to add to the general weirdness of the case.
But has anyone considered that the encapsulating gel may have been rather sophisticated?
In the area of therapeutic drug delivery, carrier gels are being developed which change their properties in response to external stimuli, allowing drugs to be released in a controlled manner.
So I’m wondering whether the gel that was smeared on the door handle might be of this type.
As for the trigger in this situation, the only thing I could come up with is radiofrequency radiation from their mobile phones and phoning them both simultaneously so they pick up and expose their fingertips at the same time.
Maybe it was all a piece of attention-seeking, macabre theatre rather than a straightforward assassination attempt.
Yes, you can tell me I’ve been watching too many movies!