Nemtsov murder witness heads to Kiev after leaving Moscow: Ukrainian official

The chief witness in the murder of Russian opposition leader Boris Nemtsov — the Ukrainian model who was girlfriend — was able to leave Russia and is now on her way to Kiev, Ukraine’s foreign ministry spokesman said late Monday.

“Ganna Duritska has just left for Kiev. Ukrainian diplomats in Moscow provided all the necessary assistance for her return home,” Yevhen Perebyinis wrote on his Twitter feed.

The 23-year-old was at Nemtsov’s side when he was gunned down on Friday and she had complained of being kept under guard in Moscow in the days since the assassination, which sent shockwaves through the country.

Duritska said earlier Monday she had given all the information she could to investigators but they were preventing her from leaving Russia, citing concerns for her security.

“For three days they have escorted me in police cars to the Investigative Committee,” Duritska told the independent Dozhd television channel, referring to the agency in charge of the probe.

“They don’t explain when I will be let go or for what reason I am kept here.”

Ganna’s mother Inna Duritska, who lives in Kiev, told AFP she feared that her daughter’s de facto house arrest meant investigators might be preparing to make her a pawn in the deepening Russia-Ukraine crisis.