The Federal Security Service (FSB) said the target of the attack was Gen. Vladimir Alekseyev, deputy head of Russia’s military intelligence agency, who was seriously wounded Friday in a shooting outside a residential building in northwest Moscow.
According to FSB statements cited by Interfax and Reuters, the suspect—Russian citizen Lubomyr Korba, born in Ukraine—was extradited from Dubai and charged with the attempted killing. Officials said one accomplice was arrested in Moscow, while a woman allegedly involved fled to Ukraine.
Ukraine has denied any involvement. “Kyiv had nothing to do with the attack,” Ukrainian Deputy Foreign Minister Andriy Sybiha said Saturday.
FSB’s accusations extended to Polish intelligence, alleging its role in Korba’s recruitment, though again no proof was made public.
The Russian Investigative Committee’s spokesperson, Svetlana Petrenko, said the attacker fired several shots at Alekseyev before fleeing.
Alekseyev has been sanctioned by the West for his alleged role in cyberattacks and has been linked to the 2018 poisoning of double agent Sergei Skripal in the U.K. He also reportedly led Russian negotiations during the siege of Azovstal in Mariupol in 2022 and spoke with Wagner Group founder Yevgeny Prigozhin during the group’s brief mutiny in 2023.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said the attack may have been intended to disrupt ongoing peace talks.
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Source: Polish Radio, PAP