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Russia Detains Uzbek Suspect in Assassination of General Igor Kirillov, Promised $100,000 by SBU

Dec 18, 2024, 10:45 AM

Russia has detained a 29-year-old Uzbek citizen suspected of assassinating Lieutenant General Igor Kirillov, the head of Russia's Nuclear, Biological, and Chemical Defense Forces, in Moscow. The attack occurred on Tuesday when a bomb, hidden in an electric scooter, was detonated outside Kirillov's apartment building on Ryazansky Avenue, also killing his assistant, Ilya Polikarpov. Russian authorities claim the suspect confessed to being recruited by Ukraine's security service, the SBU, which promised him $100,000 and permission to move to a European Union country for the assassination. The suspect monitored the scene via a camera installed in a rented car, with footage being livestreamed to his handlers in the Ukrainian city of Dnipro. Ukraine has claimed responsibility for the attack, accusing Kirillov of directing the use of banned chemical weapons against Ukrainian troops. The suspect was arrested in a village in the Moscow region and faces up to life imprisonment if convicted.