Russia's FSB detains Moldovan citizen allegedly recruited by Ukraine to assassinate Russian general
The assassination attempt reportedly targeted Nikolay Varpakhovich, a Russian Aerospace Forces general and commander of the 22nd Heavy Bomber Aviation Division, according to Russian independent media outlet Astra.
Russian authorities announced on Tuesday the detention of a 21-year-old Moldovan national suspected of attempting to assassinate a high-ranking military officer on orders from Ukrainian intelligence, according to the Federal Security Service (FSB). The incident occurred on September 3 in the Probuzhdenie settlement near Engels, in Saratov region, where the victim was shot multiple times and survived, currently hospitalized.
The suspect was allegedly recruited by Ukrainian intelligence in 2025 and entered Russia in June. He was apprehended in the southern Astrakhan region while attempting to leave the country for Moldova. FSB officials claim the suspect was offered a sum of $70,000 for carrying out the attack. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy expressed satisfaction with the arrest, stating, "Wherever Russian criminals hide, they will be found, and today there is further confirmation of this fact – confirmation in the Saratov region."
The attack comes in the wake of a series of bombings targeting individuals involved in Russia's 2022 invasion of Ukraine, with Moscow attributing some of the blasts to Kyiv.
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