Seamus Hammond
Dawn Sturgess died in 2018 after unwittingly spraying herself with Novichok nerve agent from a perfume bottle. The bottle was found by her partner, Charlie Rowley, who gave it to her as a gift. Rowley found the bottle in a sealed box wrapped in cellophane, which he believed to be legitimate. Sturgess sprayed the substance on her wrists, and within 15 minutes, she began to feel ill and was found convulsing in the bath by Rowley. The amount of Novichok in the perfume bottle was later found to be enough to kill thousands of people.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Date of death | July 2018 |
| Age | 44 |
| Cause of death | Exposure to the nerve agent novichok |
| Container | Perfume bottle |
| Discovery | Found by her partner, Charlie Rowley, in a sealed box |
| Location | Amesbury, Wiltshire |
| Proximity to other incidents | Close to the location of the poisoning of Sergei Skripal and his daughter, Yulia, in Salisbury |
| Time taken to fall ill | Within 15 minutes of applying the substance |
| Symptoms | Headache, peculiar feeling, convulsions |
| Police statement | "A milestone" in the investigation |
| Inquiries | Dawn Sturgess Inquiry, Wiltshire poisonings inquiry |
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What You'll Learn
Charlie Rowley found the perfume box in a bin
> I got a vague memory that it was just a quick look in, [a] rummage. I think the reason I remember is because the package was at the bottom and again I had to hop up, lean in, legs in the air, got it, looked at it, women’s, well Dawn will like that.
Rowley kept the box at his home in Amesbury, eight miles north of Salisbury, before gifting the perfume to his partner, Dawn Sturgess. He said he was convinced the perfume was legitimate because it looked unused, and it was a perfume that Sturgess recognised. He also said that he found it strange and scary that something could be disguised in that manner and left to be found in public.
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He gave it to Dawn Sturgess as a gift
Dawn Sturgess was a 44-year-old woman who died in July 2018 after unwittingly applying a nerve agent to her skin. The nerve agent was disguised as perfume in a sealed box and was given to her by her partner, Charlie Rowley.
Rowley found the perfume in a bin in a charity shop car park in Salisbury and gave it to Sturgess as a gift. He had found it a few months earlier, in March 2018, and brought it with him when he moved to Amesbury in May 2018. He said he had found it in a sealed box with cellophane wrapping and thought it was legitimate because it looked unused and expensive. Sturgess recognized the perfume, and Rowley gave it to her as a gift because she was "a bit moody with [him]."
The couple struggled to get the perfume out of its packaging and had to use a 12-inch knife to cut through the plastic. When they finally opened it, Sturgess sprayed it on her wrists. Within 15 minutes, she began to feel ill and went to lie down in the bath, where Rowley later found her fully clothed and convulsing. She was rushed to the hospital but never regained consciousness.
The perfume bottle contained Novichok, a deadly nerve agent, and was later linked to the poisoning of Russian spy Sergei Skripal and his daughter, Yulia, in Salisbury earlier that year. The amount of Novichok in the bottle was enough to kill thousands of people, and Sturgess's death was described as an "illegal and outrageous international assassination attempt."
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The perfume bottle was tightly wrapped
The perfume bottle that killed Dawn Sturgess was tightly wrapped in plastic packaging. The bottle was wrapped so securely that Charlie Rowley, Sturgess's partner, needed to use a 12-inch knife to cut through it.
Rowley found the bottle in a sealed box, wrapped in cellophane. He had found the box a few days before he and Sturgess fell ill and kept it at his home in Amesbury, north of Salisbury. He believed the perfume was legitimate and had not been used, so he gave it to Sturgess as a gift.
Rowley's memory of the incident is hazy, but he believes he found the box in a bin in a charity shop car park. He told police that he found the box at the bottom of the bin, which required him to hop up and lean in to retrieve it.
The discovery of the bottle was a significant milestone in the investigation into the attack on Sturgess and Rowley, as well as the attempted murders of Sergei Skripal, his daughter Yulia, and police officer Nick Bailey, who were poisoned in Salisbury earlier that year.
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The nerve agent was unwittingly applied to her skin
Dawn Sturgess died in 2018 after unwittingly applying a nerve agent to her skin. The 44-year-old had sprayed herself with what she believed to be perfume from a sealed box. The perfume bottle was discovered by her partner, Charlie Rowley, who gave it to her as a gift.
Rowley had found the bottle several days before in a cellophane wrapper, believing it to be a legitimate, unused perfume. He struggled to open the packaging, eventually using a 12-inch knife to cut through the strong, thick plastic. Sturgess then attempted to connect the pump to the bottle, but spilled some of the oily substance on her hands. She sprayed it on her wrists and, within 15 minutes, began to feel unwell, complaining of a headache and feeling peculiar. She was found by Rowley, fully clothed and convulsing in the bath.
The bottle was later found to contain Novichok, a deadly nerve agent. The inquiry into Sturgess's death heard that the amount of Novichok in the bottle was enough to kill thousands of people. It is believed that the bottle was discarded by the assassins involved in the attempted murder of former Russian spy Sergei Skripal and his daughter, Yulia, in Salisbury earlier that year. The poisonings of Rowley and Sturgess are thought to be directly linked to the Skripal case, with tests showing the Novichok was from the same batch.
The public inquiry into Sturgess's death aimed to establish the circumstances of her death, who was to blame, and what lessons could be learned. Andrew O'Connor KC, counsel to the inquiry, described Sturgess as an innocent member of the public who had been caught in the crossfire of an illegal and outrageous international assassination attempt. He added that those who discarded the bottle showed a grotesque disregard for human life.
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The bottle was disguised as a perfume Nina Ricci
The bottle of Novichok that killed Dawn Sturgess was disguised as a perfume bottle, specifically a Nina Ricci Premier Jour perfume. The bottle was found by Sturgess' partner, Charlie Rowley, who then gave it to her as a gift.
Rowley found the bottle a few days before he and Sturgess fell ill. He had found it in a sealed box, wrapped in cellophane, and kept it at his home in Amesbury, Wiltshire. He had initially struggled to remember where he found the item, but later recalled finding it in a bin in a charity shop car park in Salisbury. He believed it was legitimate and safe because it looked unused and expensive.
Rowley gave the bottle to Sturgess, who sprayed it on her wrists. She began to feel peculiar and went to lie down in the bath, where Rowley later found her fully clothed and convulsing. She was rushed to the hospital but never regained consciousness.
The inquiry into Sturgess' death described the circumstances as "extraordinary and unique," as she was an innocent victim caught in the crossfire of an international assassination attempt. The bottle contained enough poison to kill thousands of people and was deliberately left in a public place, showing a disregard for human life.
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Frequently asked questions
Dawn Sturgess received the perfume bottle from her partner, Charlie Rowley.
Charlie Rowley claims to have found the perfume bottle in a sealed box in a cellophane wrapper. He believes he may have found it in the bins in a charity shop car park in Salisbury.
Charlie Rowley gave the perfume to Dawn Sturgess as a gift. He said he gave it to her because she was "a bit moody with [him]."
Dawn Sturgess began to feel peculiar and went to lie down in the bath. Charlie Rowley found her in the bath, fully clothed, convulsing and drooling at the mouth. She was rushed to the hospital but never regained consciousness.
