Suspect in shooting of senior Russian general has been detained, Russia says

In this image made from video provided by Russian Defense Ministry Press Service on Wednesday, June 14, 2023, Lt. Gen. Vladimir Alekseyev speaks to servicemen in an undisclosed location. (Russian Defense Ministry Press Service via AP)

MOSCOW — Russian authorities said Sunday that the man suspected of shooting a deputy chief of Russia’s military intelligence agency in Moscow was detained in Dubai and handed over to Russia, and they alleged he was working on behalf of Ukraine.

Lt. Gen. Vladimir Alekseyev was hospitalized after being shot several times Friday by an assailant at an apartment building in northwestern Moscow, Investigative Committee spokesperson Svetlana Petrenko said. The attack followed a series of assassinations of senior military officers that Russia has blamed on Ukraine.

The Federal Security Service (FSB) said a Russian citizen, Lyubomir Korba, was detained in Dubai on suspicion of carrying out the shooting. In a statement on its website, FSB said it had also identified two “accomplices,” one of whom was detained in Moscow and another who “left for Ukraine.”

Russia’s Investigative Committee said Sunday on Telegram that Korba arrived in Moscow in December “on instructions from Ukrainian intelligence services to commit a terrorist attack.”

Asked about the shooting, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said Friday it would be up to law enforcement agencies to pursue the investigation but described it as an apparent “terrorist act” by Ukraine intended to derail peace talks.

There was no immediate response from Kyiv to a request for comment on the Russian allegations.

The shooting came a day after Russian, Ukrainian and U.S. negotiators wrapped up two days of talks in Abu Dhabi, the United Arab Emirates, aimed at ending the nearly 4-year-old conflict in Ukraine. The Russian delegation was led by Alekseyev’s boss, military intelligence chief Adm. Igor Kostyukov.

Alekseyev, 64, has served as the first deputy head of Russia’s military intelligence agency, known as the GRU, since 2011.

He was decorated with the Hero of Russia medal for his role in Moscow’s military campaign in Syria. In June 2023, he was shown on state TV speaking to mercenary chief Yevgeny Prigozhin, when his Wagner Group seized the military headquarters in the southern city of Rostov-on-Don during his short-lived mutiny.

Since Moscow sent troops into Ukraine in 2022, Russian authorities have blamed Kyiv for several assassinations of military officers and public figures in Russia. Ukraine has claimed responsibility for some of them.

The Associated Press