SSU Detains FSB Hitman in Kyiv Who Planned Assassination of Defense Intelligence Officer

The counterintelligence of the Security Service of Ukraine prevented a contract killing of an officer of the Defense Intelligence of Ukraine.

In Kyiv, an agent of the Federal Security Service of the Russian Federation (FSB) was exposed who attempted to eliminate a Ukrainian serviceman in the central part of the city.

SSU officers detained the hitman red-handed – at the moment he pulled out a pistol and aimed it at the intelligence officer inside one of the capital’s establishments.

The investigation established that the assassination attempt was planned by a 28-year-old citizen of one of the Central Asian countries. Russian special services recruited him while he was looking for easy money through Telegram channels.

Following his handlers’ instructions, the agent arrived in Ukraine under the guise of a tourist. He initially stayed in Pervomaisk, in the Mykolaiv region.

There, he purchased several smartphones and SIM cards, which he regularly changed to maintain covert communication with the Federal Security Service of the Russian Federation.

Later, the foreign national traveled to Kyiv. He received from his handler a photo of the potential “target,” approximate geolocations, and the coordinates of a cache from which he retrieved a pistol and ammunition.

To perform the contract killing, he was promised $ 50,000 and legalization in one of the EU countries.

At the scene of the attempted assassination, officers seized the weapon, ammunition, and a smartphone containing evidence of his contacts with the FSB.

SSU investigators have notified the agent of suspicion under several articles of the Criminal Code of Ukraine: attempted premeditated murder, aiding the aggressor state, and illegal handling of weapons.

The suspect is being held in custody. He faces life imprisonment with confiscation of property.

The special operation was carried out by officers of the Counterintelligence Department and the SSU Directorate in the Mykolaiv region, under the procedural supervision of the regional prosecutor’s office.