Mario Scaramella, the Italian contact of murdered former Russian spy Alexander Litvinenko was questioned for six hours on Wednesday in a Rome jail by prosecutors.

Mario Scaramella has been in Rome’s Regina Coeli prison since Christmas eve, when he was arrested at Naples airport after flying home from London. He denies wrongdoing and has not been charged with any crime.

Scaramella was one of the last people to meet Litvinenko on the day he fell ill. Scaramella was briefly hospitalized in London after testing positive for the radioactive isotope that killed the Russian spy last month.

The Litvinenko case drew attention to Italian judicial probes involving Scaramella, a consultant to a former parliamentary commission on Cold War-era Soviet espionage.

His arrest was ordered officially for “aggravated slander” related to a former Ukrainian spy who Scaramella had linked to an alleged plot on his life in Italy, his lawyer said.

The plot also threatened the life of the head of the former commission, Sen. Paolo Guzzanti, his lawyer said.

Prosecutor Pietro Saviotti said questioning had touched on many issues —- and suggested they appeared to strengthen the accusations against Scaramella, who is also being investigated in connection with an arms trafficking case.

“The questioning was long, deep and there are also elements which need more work,” Saviotti told reporters.

“I believe I’ve obtained positive results but this is absolutely my own evaluation. Certainly the defense may say otherwise.”

A judge was present at the questioning. The defense requested he release Scaramella, who has already spent Christmas behind bars. Judge Valerio Savio did not take any immediate decision.

“We maintain that Scaramella brought all of his knowledge of the issues in an extremely precise manner. Due to this, we are very optimistic (about our request),” said Scaramella’s lawyer, Sergio Rastrelli.

During his November 1 meeting with Litvinenko at a London sushi bar, Scaramella said he had shown him emails warning of a possible plot against their lives.

Litvinenko, in a statement released after his death on November 23, accused Russian President Vladimir Putin of masterminding his poisoning.

The Kremlin has denied involvement in the case, which has sparked conspiracy theories, revived memories of Cold War spying and strained relations between Russia and Britain.

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