The SSU has detained two Russian agents who were planning a terrorist attack in the centre of Kyiv
The Security Service of Ukraine has reported the arrest of two Russian agents suspected of plotting a terrorist attack in the centre of Kyiv.
According to the investigation, the suspects planned to carry out an attack on a member of the Ukrainian Armed Forces. They intended to blow up his car, which was parked near the pedestrian zone on Independence Square.
The investigation established that one of the suspects was to place a homemade explosive device under the car for subsequent remote detonation.
The SBU noted that, in this way, the organisers of the attack hoped not only to kill the soldier but also to cause the maximum number of civilian casualties.
Law enforcement officers had previously detected a GPS tracker fitted to the soldier’s car. This enabled them to foil the plot and detain both suspects before the explosive device could be planted.
One of the female agents was arrested whilst attempting to retrieve a homemade explosive device from a hiding place. The other was arrested at her home. During searches of her property, nearly 6 kg of explosive substances were found.
According to the investigation, the two detainees were acting independently. They were recruited through acquaintances from the Russian Federation who collaborate with the Russian security services.
One of the suspects is an unemployed resident of the Sumy region. According to the investigation, she travelled to Kyiv after being promised quick money, checked into a hotel and constructed a homemade explosive device following video instructions from a handler in Russia.
She then left the explosive in a hiding place at one of the capital’s cemeteries. To maintain her cover on the way to the cemetery, the woman altered her appearance, disguising herself as an elderly woman wearing a headscarf and carrying flowers.
Another suspect was instructed to retrieve the explosive from the hiding place and attach it, along with a GPS tracker, under a soldier’s car.
According to the SBU, the second agent turned out to be the former owner of a confectionery shop in Sevastopol. Following the failure of her business, according to the investigation, she was offered a deal in exchange for help with her debts.
The investigation established that, upon arriving in Kyiv, she had been following the Ukrainian soldier, attempting to establish his routes and whereabouts.
During searches of her premises, a wig was seized which, according to the investigation, she had planned to use whilst planting an explosive device in the car.
Both detainees have been charged under a number of articles of the Criminal Code of Ukraine, including high treason, aiding and abetting a terrorist act, preparing a terrorist attack, and the unlawful acquisition and manufacture of an explosive device.
The suspects are being held in custody without the right to bail. They face life imprisonment with confiscation of property.
Comprehensive operations were carried out by SBU officers in the Autonomous Republic of Crimea in cooperation with the SBU’s Main Directorate for Criminal Investigation, under the procedural supervision of the Prosecutor’s Office of the Autonomous Republic of Crimea and the city of Sevastopol.
