Editor: Politkovskaya's killer still free

MOSCOW, Oct. 7 (UPI) -- The alleged killer of Russian reporter Anna Politkovskaya is free, traveling in Europe, while new suspects in her slaying have been identified, her editor says.

Sergei Sokolov, editor of Novaya Gazeta, marked the third anniversary of the crusading reporter's shooting death in Moscow Tuesday by revealing that the suspected triggerman in her death, Rustam Makhmudov, is traveling in Europe, The Moscow Times reported.

Speaking at a news conference, Sokolov said Makhmudov could have been captured in April but that police let him slip through their grasp. He alleged that investigators have pointed the finger at new people who might have been involved in Politkovskaya's killing, but their names cannot be disclosed yet.

Politkovskaya, whose reporting for Novaya Gazeta exposed Russian abuses in Chechnya, was shot dead in her Moscow apartment building Oct. 7, 2006. The Times said three men accused of being accomplices in the slaying were cleared in a jury trial this year. A retrial has been ordered by the Russian Supreme Court but has been delayed, the newspaper said.