Russian general bombing investigation: $100,000 reward and relocation to Europe

Investigators have revealed details of the murder of the head of Radiation, Chemical and Biological Defense Troops of the Russian Armed Forces, Lieutenant General Igor Kirillov, and his assistant.

Photo: commons.wikimedia.org by Pulux11, https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/

A vehicle of the Investigative Committee of the Russian Federation

Two suspects were detained in the Moscow region on suspicion of the murder.

According to law enforcement agencies, the perpetrator is a 29-year-old native of Uzbekistan with acquired Russian citizenship. It is believed that Ukrainian special services recruited him for the terrorist attack. A few days before the tragedy, the man came to Moscow, where he received an improvised explosive device. He then installed it on an electric scooter, which he left at the entrance to the building where the general lived.

In addition, the suspect installed a surveillance camera in a carsharing vehicle. The video was broadcast online to Dnepr. As soon as the military men stepped out of the building, the bomb was detonated remotely killing both of them.

The man was to receive $100,000 (more than 10 million rubles at the current exchange rate) for fulfilling the task. They also promised to ensure his relocation to Europe.

The second detainee is a Russian citizen who acted as an assistant. The man parked the carsharing vehicle at the scene of the incident. It is believed that he did not know the real purpose of the operation.

Russian Foreign Ministry representative Maria Zakharova noted that it was obvious who ordered the terrorist attack. She also criticized the reaction from the UN to the bombing of General Kirillov and said that such a reaction demonstrated the venality of the organization.

Zakharova also commented on the article in The New York Times, in which an SBU official stated that Ukraine assassinated Igor Kirillov as he was a "legitimate target." The terrorist attack can never be legal, plus there no law in Ukraine in principle, she said.

Igor Kirillov and his assistant were killed in the morning of December 17 as they both stepped out of the apartment building on Ryazansky Prospekt in Moscow, where Kirillov lived. The explosive device was remotely activated at the moment when the lieutenant general went out to his service car with his assistant.