Who is Christopher Steele? MI6 spy behind Donald Trump dirty dossier and Orbis Business Intelligent director
Christopher Steele fled his Surrey home after he was named in US media as having written about the alleged lurid activities of Donald Trump
CHRISTOPHER Steele was named by US media as the former British spy believed to be behind the dossier filled with lurid allegations about Donald Trump.
The 52-year-old reportedly fled his £1.4million Surrey home soon after his identity was made public and broke his silence in March.
Who is Christopher Steele?
Former British intelligence officer Christopher Steele, 52, has been identified in US media reports as the author of the "dirty dossier" that claims Russia collated a file of compromising information on Donald Trump - which has not been verified.
Steele, an ex-MI6 agent, is said to have specialised in Russia and counterintelligence.
Described as having a "good reputation" within the intelligence community, the former MI6 spy was stationed in Moscow in the early 1990s to provide covert surveillance of the crumbling Soviet government.
Steele met his future wife Laura Hunt in April 1988 and after a whirlwind romance the pair were engaged the following Christmas.
The happy couple were married in July 1990, the same year Steele was stationed in the Russian capital and the pair were said to be "constantly harassed" by the Russian spooks.
His wife Laura, who worked for British Airways during their time in Russia, sadly died aged 43 in 2010.
According to Reuters, Steele spent years working for MI6 in Russia and Paris and at the Foreign and Commonwealth Office in London.
After leaving MI6, he supplied the FBI with information on corruption at Fifa which led to the resignation of its long-time president Sepp Blatter.
Steele was then reportedly hired by a US political research firm to investigate Trump on behalf of "unidentified Republicans" who wanted to derail his White House bid.
He then allegedly wrote a 35-page report consisting of memos compiled before and after the November 8 election – which was later partly funded by Democrats as well as the anti-Trump Republicans.
Sources told The Times, Steele worked with former Russian spy Alexander Litvinenko before he was murdered.
Steele is currently one of two directors of Orbis Business Intelligence, according to UK company records along with Christopher Burrows, 58, the reports.
What is Orbis Business Intelligence?
Orbis Business Intelligence’s website said it was formed in 2009 by former British intelligence professionals.
The firm's website states it relies on a “global network” of experts and business leaders, provides clients with strategic advice and mounts “intelligence-gathering operations”.
Its website states: "We provide strategic advice, mount intelligence-gathering operations and conduct complex, often cross-border investigations."
The company, based in Grosvenor Gardens, says it “draws on extensive experience at boardroom level in government, multilateral diplomacy and international business to develop bespoke solutions for clients".
Steele's business partner Burrows has refused to “confirm or deny” that Orbis had produced the 35-page dossier.
Who is Alexander Litvinenko?
Former Russian spy Alexander Litvinenko was killed in November 2006 by radioactive polonium-210, which he is believed to have drunk in a cup of tea.
The 44-year-old had been an officer with the Federal Security Service (FSB), the successor to the KGB, but he fled to Britain after criticising Russian president Vladimir Putin.
After his death, it was revealed he had been paid by MI6.
An inquest into Litvinenko's death found that he had been murdered in a FSB operation - that could have been on the personal orders of Putin himself.
What are the allegations against Donald Trump?
Steele's alleged 35-page report consists of memos compiled before and after the November 8 election.
It includes unverified claims that Trump let prostitutes perform “perverted sexual acts” in a Moscow hotel room used by President Barack Obama and his wife Michelle.
A furious Trump let rip at a press conference following the report’s coverage, slamming it as “fake news”.
He said: "In those rooms you have cameras in the strangest places. You’d better be careful or you’ll be watching yourself on nightly TV. I tell this to people all the time.
"I’m also very much of a germaphobe by the way."
What has happened to Christopher Steele?
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”.
Speaking for the first time on March 7 the former spy said he is back working at London-based intelligence firm Orbis, adding he would “focus” his efforts on supporting the company.
Steele is reported to have discussed his claims in a new book by journalist Luke Harding.
He insists that his report is "70 to 90 per cent accurate".
He is quoted as saying: “I’ve been dealing with this country for thirty years. Why would I invent this stuff?"
Harding's book claims the reports have been taken seriously in Washington due to Steele's reputation for producing reliable reports on Russia.
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