Brit spy who ‘worked with Alexander Litvinenko and leaked Trump dossier’ flees £1.5m home and tells friends ‘look after my cat’
A FORMER Brit spy believed to be behind a dossier making lurid allegations against Donald Trump has fled his home in fear, telling his friends "look after my cat".
Christopher Steele, 52, left his £1.5million gated Surrey mansion this morning after realising it was only a matter of time before his identity was made public.
A source close to Mr Steele said he was “horrified” when his nationality was published and is now "terrified for his and his family's safety".
The 52-year-old is the director of Orbis Business Intelligence, based in West London, along with colleague Christopher Burrows, according to the
It has since been claimed the former intelligence agent once worked with Russian spy Alexander Litvenenko, who was killed by radioactive polonium-210 in London.
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Trump has called the dossier "sick" and “all fake news” and denied the sordid allegations.
It includes claims of sex parties in Russia and coordination between the President-elect’s team and the Russian government.
Unidentified intelligence officials cited by CNN said the source of the documents was a credible former MI6 agent and that he had worked in Russia in the 1990s.
When approached at his home tonight, Mr Burrows, 58, said he could not “confirm or deny” that Orbis had produced the report.
A neighbour of Mr Steele, who lives in a £1.5million mansion in Surrey, said he would be away for a few days.
A neighbour told the : “He asked me to look after his cat as he would be gone for a few days.
“I'm not sure where he's gone or how to contact him. I don't really know much about him except to say hello.”
In previous weeks Mr Steele has declined repeated requests for interviews through an intermediary, who said the subject was “too hot”, the WSJ reported.
A LinkedIn profile for Mr Steele did not give specifics about his career.
Intelligence officers often use diplomatic postings as cover for their espionage activities.
Orbis Business Intelligence’s website said it was formed in 2009 by former British intelligence professionals.
The firm says it relies on a “global network” of experts and business leaders, provides clients with strategic advice and mounts “intelligence-gathering operations”.
Speaking about corporate intelligence work in general terms, Mr Burrows said: “The objective is to respond to the requirements set out by our clients. We have no political axe to grind.”
John Sipher, who retired in 2014 after 28 years in the CIA’s clandestine service, said Mr Steele had a good reputation in the intelligence world and was stationed in Russia for years.
He is said to have specialised in Russia and counterintelligence.
Steele hasn't responded to messages left on his cell phone and by email.
The FBI declined to comment.
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