Ukrainian, 19, ‘is caught disguised as a granny while attempting to assassinate Russian defence official
Ukrainian, 19, ‘is caught disguised as a granny while attempting to assassinate Russian defence official
Russia has detained a male Ukrainian ‘agent’, 19, who allegedly posed as a ‘granny’ in a bid to assassinate a top defence plant official.
The ‘car bomber’ collected an explosive device stashed in a cemetery in St Petersburg, according to the FSB security service.
The man then changed into the clothes of an ‘elderly woman’ to plant the bomb on the boss of a Russian arms plant.
The car had been monitored by two women members of the alleged spy ring – one a hairdresser, the other a groomer, said the FSB.
When the saboteur ‘dressed as a babushka [granny]’ attached the explosive device to the underside of the victim’s car, he was apprehended by intelligence officers.
The two women were detained on the way to the airport.
In video footage shared by the FSB, officers are seen arresting a person in a long skirt and headscarf.
Investigators said the detainees acted ‘on the instructions of a supervisor associated with the Main Intelligence Directorate of the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine.’
They said two of the detainees, under orders from Ukraine, conducted reconnaissance near the residence of the target before handing over an explosive device to the agent via a hidden stash set up at a cemetery in St Petersburg.
The 19-year-old detainee allegedly confessed to being recruited by the Ukrainian secret services on the Telegram messenger, and planting the bomb.
‘I went, picked up the package [in a cemetery], a black power bank-shaped device with magnets,’ he said.
‘They sent me the exact location where the car was parked, with recent photos. I took public transport to Sosnovka Park.
‘I went to Sosnovka Park at 4am, changed [into women’s] clothes, and left the park at around 5am.
‘At around 6am, I reached the car, installed the device, tried to get away but was detained.’
All three could face life imprisonment under Russia’s terrorism laws.
The three citizens were born in 1993, 1994 and 2006, according to Meduza.
Their names have not been published. The military plant in question was also unclear.
