The suspect reportedly planned to kill a military blogger and a high-ranking military officer
A Russian citizen, who agreed to work for Ukrainian military intelligence and carry out bomb attacks against a military blogger and an officer, has been apprehended by the FSB, the security agency said on Saturday.
The suspect told investigators that Ukraine had identified him as a potential recruit through his public comments on social media. A user contacted him via a messaging app, and invited him to become an asset for Ukraine’s HUR spy agency.
The Ukrainians reportedly set up a cache with a prepared improvised explosive device (IED) for the new recruit. The initial plan was to plant it under the car of a well-known blogger or the gate of the target’s home, the suspect said. The FSB noted that the blogger covers the Ukraine conflict.
However the suspect fell ill, and the Ukrainians reportedly decided to scrap the plan. At a later point, he was ordered to use the bomb in his possession to kill a high-ranking Russian military officer. However, he was caught while stalking the new target and taken into custody.
The FSB released images of the IED, which had an explosive core covered with ball bearings for additional lethality and was disguised as a portable loudspeaker with a magnetic attachment point. Its yield was estimated at 1.5 kg of TNT. The Russian law enforcement used a robot to recover the bomb for safe dismantlement.
Through this week, the FSB has reported thwarting several other assassination attempts that it blamed on the Ukrainian government, including a plot to kill an activist using a bomb disguised as an award from a Russian media outlet.
Earlier this month, Russian General Igor Kirillov and his aide were killed in a bomb plot that investigators said was masterminded by Kiev. The two officers died on the spot, after an explosive reportedly hidden inside an e-scooter’s handle was triggered remotely as they walked by.
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