Pro-Russian Paramilitary Leader Killed in Moscow Bombing
Reports from Russian media indicate that a high-ranking pro-Russian paramilitary leader from Ukraine was killed in a bomb explosion in Moscow on Monday. The bomb detonated at the moment a man accompanied by his bodyguards entered the lobby of a luxury apartment building. State news agency Tass reported that it was an attack against Armen Sarkisyan, who was later confirmed dead in the hospital after being initially considered severely injured.
Earlier reports indicated at least one dead and four injured in the blast. Sarkisyan has faced accusations from Ukraine for allegedly supporting Russia in the eastern Ukrainian region of Donetsk. The Ukrainian secret service, SBU, described Sarkisyan in December as a crime boss in a region that has been largely controlled by Moscow since 2014.
He is officially suspected of belonging to and supporting illegal armed groups, with claims that he formed a pro-Russian military formation from local convicts and organized the procurement of supplies for frontline units. As of now, there has been no official comment from Ukraine regarding the explosion.
Related Sources: