In the northwest of Moscow, an explosion occurred in the elite residential complex 'Scarlet Sails' on Aviatsionnaya Street. One person was killed, and four others were injured, according to TASS reports from emergency services. The main theory is that it was an assassination attempt. Preliminary reports suggest the explosive device went off in the elevator lobby, though its exact location is still unknown, according to Baza.
VChK-OGPU stated that the deceased may be Armen Sarkisyan, the president of the boxing federation of the self-proclaimed Donetsk People's Republic and the founder of the "ArBat" battalion.
Also, Sarkisyan’s bodyguard, 49-year-old Colonel Oleg Kaspirovich from Crimea, who is listed on Ukraine's "Peacemaker" database for involvement in crimes against Ukraine's national security, was wounded in the head and neck and hospitalized. He is the former deputy commander of the special forces unit of the Crimean Territorial Command of the Ukrainian Ministry of Internal Affairs. He betrayed Ukraine in 2014 and sided with Russia during the occupation of Crimea.
Another victim, 41-year-old Sergey Shkryabatovsky, sustained a broken shin and severe arterial bleeding. Another injured person, 44-year-old Darya Karseladze, has an open neck wound and a broken shin. She is conscious but unable to speak.
Who is Armen Sarkisyan?
Armen Sarkisyan (also known as Armen Horlivskiy), originally from Horlivka (Donetsk region, a city currently under occupation), was part of the inner circle of fugitive President Viktor Yanukovych. Since May 2014, he has been wanted internationally for organizing murders in Kyiv.
He is known for supplying "titushki" (mercenary agents) to the Maidan during the Revolution of Dignity in the capital. Sarkisyan had close ties with the former Party of Regions member Yuriy Ivaniushchenko and was his "right-hand man." According to the Ministry of Internal Affairs, the murder of journalist Vyacheslav Veremiya was carried out by Sarkisyan's group.
Working closely with the FSB (Federal Security Service of Russia), Sarkisyan received a new assignment from the Russians after the full-scale invasion of Ukraine: to create a new armed formation for the war against Ukraine. He became the leader of a combat unit called the 'Special Forces Battalion 'ArBAT,'' which was composed mainly of recidivists convicted of murders, robberies, and other serious crimes.
To recruit prisoners, the Russian special services appointed Sarkisyan as the so-called "overseer" of prisons in the temporarily occupied part of Donetsk region. Initially, 'ArBAT' fought on the Toretsk front, but later, the group was transferred to the Kursk region to storm Ukrainian positions.
In addition, Sarkisyan uses controlled companies to acquire thermal imaging devices, fuel, and construction materials for the needs of the occupiers at the front. He is also the so-called vice president of the "DPR" Boxing Federation and a shadow supervisor of all business activities in occupied Horlivka.
However, according to the Russian Telegram channel Mozhem Ob'yasnit, in recent years, Sarkisyan has been living constantly in Moscow.
In December of last year, based on gathered evidence, investigators from the Security Service of Ukraine announced charges against Sarkisyan under several articles of the Criminal Code of Ukraine:
- Part 7 of Article 111-1 (voluntary participation in illegal armed or militarized formations or providing assistance to such formations in combat operations against the Armed Forces of Ukraine);
- Part 3 of Article 28, Part 1 of Article 111-2 (aiding the aggressor state, committed by an organized group of persons with prior conspiracy).
