Ukraine's Security Service detains hitman attempting to kill Navy officer on Russia's orders
The Security Service of Ukraine (SSU) has caught a Russian agent red-handed in the city of Odesa as he was attempting to assassinate a high-ranking officer from the Ukrainian Navy.
Source: SSU on social media
Details: An investigation has established that on the day of the assassination attempt, the hitman, armed with a pistol and two loaded magazines and wearing a balaclava, took up a position near the exit of the residential complex where the Ukrainian officer lives. He pretended to be repairing a bicycle as he waited for the officer's car to appear.
When the car approached the exit, the hitman threw the bicycle under its wheels and attempted to open fire on the driver. He was immediately apprehended by a task force comprising counter-intelligence officers and special forces from the SSU's Special Operations Centre Alpha, who had been keeping the suspect under surveillance for some time and had documented his every move.
According to the investigation, the suspect is a 37-year-old national of a Balkan country who had been recruited by Russian intelligence services.
He arrived in the Ukrainian capital in February 2026, posing as a tourist, before travelling to Odesa to carry out the Russian assignment. When he arrived in the port city, his handler in Russia sent him the geolocation of a cache from which he retrieved a pistol fitted with a silencer and ammunition.
The suspect tracked his potential victim's habitual locations and routes, then agreed on the location of the planned assassination with the Russian intelligence officer.
To maintain his cover, the hitman regularly moved to different rented flats and hotel rooms in Odesa.
SSU investigators have served him with a notice of suspicion for committing offences under Articles 15.2 and 258.2 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine (completed attempt to commit a terrorist attack). The suspect is in custody. He faces up to 12 years in prison.
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