SBU detains 19-year-old suspected of plotting bomb attack on bus full of soldiers

On October 12, Ukraine's Security Service (SBU) intercepted a suspected Russian plot to detonate a bomb on a bus carrying Ukrainian soldiers in the city of Rivne. The 19-year-old student detained in connection with the alleged plan intended to embed an improvised explosive device beneath a military transport vehicle. To monitor the bus, a camera disguised as a juice box was installed near the parking area.

Russian intelligence operatives were prepared to activate the bomb upon boarding the bus, intending to target the soldiers en route to their permanent deployment site. The suspect allegedly joined the scheme for financial gain, recruited by Russian intelligence through Telegram channels offering quick earnings. Upon reaching Rivne, he retrieved the explosives from a hidden location specified by his handler and affixed the device to the military vehicle, using two glass bottles filled with flammable liquid to reinforce it.

Upon discovering the plot, SBU officers secured the suspect at the city bus station when he attempted to depart for Kyiv. His phone was seized, revealing his communication with his Russian handler to report the planted device. The Rivne Regional Prosecutor's Office formally charged the suspect with an attempted terrorist attack, and a court ordered his detention without bail.

Should he be convicted, he faces up to eight years in prison and potential property confiscation. This incident is part of a series of thwarted alleged terrorist plots orchestrated by Russian intelligence services in Rivne this year, targeting areas including a park and administrative buildings in the city center.