Russian prosecutors have detained ten people in connection with the killing of investigative reporter Anna Politkovskaya, the Itar-Tass news agency reported today.
"We have made serious progress in the Politkovskaya murder investigation," the agency quoted Prosecutor-General Yuri Chaika as saying. "Ten people have been arrested in connection with this case and literally, in the very near future, they will be charged with carrying out this grave crime."
Ms Politkovskaya (48), a fierce critic of Russian President Vladimir Putin, was shot dead in the stairwell of her Moscow apartment.
Her murder in October last year brought a wave of international condemnation and prompted concern about press freedoms in Russian.
Mr Putin said everything possible would be done to find and punish her killers.