Türkiye Extradites Russian-Accused Native of Sumy for Alleged Elimination of Moskalik

The Federal Security Service of the Russian Federation reported the arrest of a suspect in the elimination of Lieutenant General Yaroslav Moskalik in the Moscow suburb of Balashikha.

The media outlet Mediazona reported on this.

Security forces arrested Ihnat Kuzin, a 1983-born native of Ukraine, on suspicion of involvement in the murder of Lieutenant General Yaroslav Moskalik after his detention and extradition from Türkiye to Russia.

In the press release of the Federal Security Service of the Russian Federation, Kuzin is described as an “agent of Ukrainian intelligence services” who holds a residence permit in Ukraine. According to the investigation, the man planted a bomb in a car near the home of the Russian military officer in Balashikha. The car exploded when Moskalik exited the building. The military officer sustained severe injuries and died at the scene.

Security forces claim that the explosive device, planted in a parked car during the assassination attempt on Moskalik, was remotely triggered from Ukrainian territory.

According to the investigation, it was Kuzin who parked the car near the house of the military officer. The components for the bomb were allegedly taken from a hideout set up by Ukrainian intelligence services in the Moscow region.

Elimination of Lieutenant General Moskalik

Lieutenant General Yaroslav Moskalik, Deputy Head of the Main Operational Directorate of the General Staff of the Russian Armed Forces, was killed by an explosion on April 25, 2025.

A Volkswagen Golf, parked near a building, exploded around 10:40 a.m. The blast, intensified by the detonation of the car’s gas cylinder equipment, was so powerful that the victim was thrown several meters away.

According to media reports, the executor of the assassination of General Moskalik lived in the same building with him. The suspect parked the car filled with explosives and equipped with a surveillance camera on April 16. According to the building’s residents, the Volkswagen Golf that was blown up was parked in front of the building’s exit on April 16. It was also the last time a man, who had left the car, was seen near it.

According to journalists, Kuzin flew from Russia to Türkiye on April 19, just a few days after parking the explosive-laden car near the general’s home.

Ihnat Kuzin is a native of the Ukrainian city of Sumy. Since 2015, Kuzin has been registered in the Russian Republic of Karachay-Cherkessia.

This is not the first time that the Turkish authorities have extradited suspects in the bombing of Russian military personnel at Russia’s request. In July 2024, Yevgeny Serebryakov, a suspect in the bombing of a Russian military officer’s car, was extradited from Türkiye to Moscow.