Russian pilot was shot dead in Spain with Makarov pistol to send a message – NYT

Russian pilot Maxim Kuzminov, who flew a helicopter to Ukraine, was shot dead in Spain with six bullets fired from a Soviet Makarov pistol.

Source: The New York Times, citing sources in the Spanish investigative authorities

Details: According to the NYT, Kuzminov's killers "wanted to send a message".

"This was obvious to investigators in Spain even before they discovered who he was. Not only did the killers shoot him six times in a parking garage in southern Spain, they ran over his body with their car. They also left an important clue to their identity, according to investigators: shell casings from 9-mm Makarov rounds, a standard ammunition of the former Communist bloc," the article says.

Quote from a senior Spanish Guardia Civil official: "It was a clear message. I will find you, I will kill you, I will run you over and humiliate you".

More details: The NYT describes the circumstances of the murder. On the morning of 13 February, a white Hyundai Tucson drove into the garage under Kuzminov's apartment building and parked in an empty spot between the lifts used by the residents and a ramp leading to the street. According to a senior Civil Guard officer, the two men waited there for several hours.

At around 16:20, Kuzminov drove into the garage, parked and started walking towards the lifts. As he passed in front of a white Hyundai, the two assailants emerged, called out to him and opened fire. Despite being hit by six bullets, most of which hit him in the torso, Kuzminov managed to run a short distance before falling onto the ramp.

The two killers returned to the car and drove over Kuzminov's body before driving away. The burnt car was found several miles from the crime scene. It took a week for experts to identify the make and model of the car and establish that it had been stolen two days before the murder in the city of Murcia, located about an hour away.

A special unit of the Civil Guard is investigating in strict secrecy. The authorities have not publicly confirmed that Kuzminov was murdered.

A senior Civil Guard official said that Kuzminov had led an "indiscreet life" in Spain, visiting bars popular with Russians and Ukrainians, spending the money he had received from the Ukrainian state. He drove around the city of Villajoyosa in a black Mercedes S-Class.

Senior police officials, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the killing bore the hallmarks of similar attacks linked to the Kremlin, including the assassination of a former Chechen rebel commander in Berlin in 2019 and the poisoning of former Russian military spy Sergei Skripal in Salisbury in 2018.

"It is not common here in Spain for someone to be shot with a lot of ammunition. These are indications that point to organized crime, to a criminal organization, to professionals," said Chief Pepe Álvarez of the Villajoyosa Police Department.

According to the outlet, Kuzminov's murder has raised fears that Russia's European spy networks are still active and targeting the Kremlin's enemies, despite concerted efforts to dismantle them after Putin's invasion of Ukraine in 2022.

The NYT notes that Ukrainian officials fear that Kuzminov's killing could scare others away from following suit.

"Who will cooperate with us after this? Russia will intensively spread propaganda — they’re already doing it — that they will find all traitors. This is a hidden message to other citizens of Russia, especially military personnel, that we will find you if you betray us," one senior official said.

Background:

• It was reported on 23 August 2023 that a Russian Mi-8 helicopter had ended up in Ukraine as a result of a long-running special operation. The pilot of the Mi-8 was Maxim Kuzminov, 28. He received a reward of US$500,000 in hryvnias.
• On 19 February 2024, Defence Intelligence of Ukraine confirmed that Maxim Kuzminov had been found dead in Spain.
• Director of Russia's Foreign Intelligence Service Sergei Naryshkin stated that Kuzminov was already "morally dead when he was planning his dirty and terrible crime".

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