A Russian military officer was killed in a bomb attack on Thursday in Russian-annexed Crimea, and a woman was arrested on suspicion of assassinating him on behalf of Ukrainian special services, the regional governor said, reports BritPanorama.
There was no immediate comment from Ukraine.
Several unofficial Russian Telegram channels named the victim as Robert Shageyev, a former Ukrainian naval officer who switched allegiance to Russia during Moscow’s annexation of Crimea in 2014. They noted he had been commanding the Ukrainian submarine Zaporizhzhia at that time.
Myrotvorets, an unofficial Ukrainian website providing a database of individuals deemed war criminals or traitors, stated that Shageyev had been “liquidated.” The attack occurred in Sevastopol, the largest city in Russian-annexed Crimea. The regional governor, Mikhail Razvozhayev, did not identify the victim or the suspect.
State news agency TASS quoted the FSB security service stating the arrested woman was a Russian national. Russia has attributed several previous assassinations of senior military officials and individuals linked to Moscow’s war efforts to Ukraine. While Ukrainian sources have claimed responsibility in some instances, they have denied involvement in others. Separately, Razvozhayev reported that five people were killed in Sevastopol overnight during an operation to dispose of an explosive device.
