“As a result of a special operation in Zaporizhzhya, an FSB agent was detained hot on the trail after attempting to eliminate a Ukrainian Armed Forces officer who was undergoing rehabilitation after being wounded on the front line,” the statement said.
The investigation found that Russian intelligence services lured the officer into an industrial zone under the pretense of a date using a fake female account on a dating website.
According to the SBU, the officer was met by a masked assassin who stabbed him six times — in the neck, chest, abdomen, and leg — before fleeing. The victim was hospitalized in intensive care in critical condition.
Within several hours of the attack, SBU officers detained the suspect at a relative’s home, where he was trying to hide.
The SBU said the attacker was a 25-year-old unemployed local resident who had been recruited by the FSB through Telegram channels advertising “easy money.” He had previously carried out “test” arson attacks in the city on behalf of Russian intelligence.
For the attempted assassination, he received the victim’s address and detailed instructions from his Russian handler.
Law enforcement officers also found the knife discarded near the crime scene and seized the suspect’s smartphone and tablet used to communicate with the FSB.
He has been formally charged under Part 3 of Article 15 and Part 2 of Article 115 of Ukraine’s Criminal Code — attempted premeditated murder.
The suspect is now in custody and faces life imprisonment with confiscation of property, the SBU said.