Aerospace Forces General Shot and Wounded in Saratov Region, Reports Say
Authorities did not identify the officer, but unverified reports claimed the victim was a major general who heads a strategic bomber division.
A Russian Aerospace Forces officer was shot and wounded in the city of Engels, located in the southern Saratov region of Russia, according to law enforcement and media reports. The Investigative Committee, Russia's primary investigative agency, has launched a criminal investigation into the attempted murder and arms trafficking.
Cartridge casings and bullets were found at the crime scene. The wounded officer was transported to a military hospital in Moscow. While the identity of the officer remains unconfirmed, unverified sources suggest that Major General Nikolai Varpakhovich, who commands a strategic bomber division at Engels-2 airbase, may have been the victim.
The shooting occurred outside a private residence and involved a gunman on a motorcycle wearing a helmet. Varpakhovich was the target of an in absentia criminal charge filed by Ukraine on Monday, alleging he ordered a fatal missile attack on a children's hospital in Kyiv in July 2024. If confirmed, this would mark Varpakhovich as the seventh Russian general to face assassination attempts in the past two years.
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