Russian authorities detained an Uzbek citizen suspected of having carried out the assassination of General Igor Kirilovhead of Russia’s radiological, chemical and biological defense forces, and his assistant, Ilya Polikarpovwho died on Tuesday in a explosion in Moscow.
The arrest was announced by the Russian Investigative Committee and the Federal Security Service (FSB)which identified the suspect as a man born in 1995, whose identity was not revealed.
According to official statements, the detainee confessed to having been “recruited by the Ukrainian special services”who would have orchestrated the attack.
According to the preliminary investigation, the detainee traveled to Moscow at the request of his recruiters in Ukraine, who gave him a high power explosive device. This device was hidden in a electric scooter parked next to the entrance to the building where General Kirilov resided.
In addition, the suspect rented a shared car in which he installed a video camera with wifi connection to be able to transmit in real time the images of the general’s home to the organizers of the attack, presumably located in the Ukrainian city of Dnipro.
When Kirilov and his assistant left the building, the detainee remotely activated the explosive that was in the car, which caused the immediate death of both, according to the FSB.
The Uzbek confessed that his recruiters promised him a reward of 100,000 US dollars and the possibility of settle in a country of the European Union after completing the attack.
El general Kirilov, de 54 yearsheld a key position in the Russian military structure and was sanctioned in October by the United Kingdom for his alleged involvement in sending chemical weapons for use in Ukraine.
He Russian Investigative Committeethe body responsible for the largest investigations in the country, confirmed the general’s death in a statement.
According to official sources, the murder occurred around 6:00 in the morning, near house number 2 on Ryazansky Avenue, in the Nizhny Novgorod district of Moscow.
Kirilov’s assassination marks the death of the highest-ranking Russian military officer since the start of the Russian offensive in Ukrainein February 2022. His death was claimed in kyiv by a source within the Ukrainian security services (SBU)who accused the general of war crimes committed in Ukraine.
Russian authorities called the attack a deliberate act targeting one of their most senior military leaders and promised to conduct a thorough investigation. Meanwhile, the case adds a new layer of tensions between Moscow and kyiv in the context of a conflict that continues to intensify.
(With information from EFE and AFP)
