Russian serviceman killed in St. Petersburg car explosion, murder investigation opened
Russian outlet Fontanka reports he was a colonel in an air defense army, and there was no immediate comment from Ukraine.
A Russian serviceman was killed Thursday, Nov. 12, when his car exploded in the Pushkinsky district of St. Petersburg at about 7 a.m. Russia's Investigative Committee opened a murder investigation. It has not officially named the man or confirmed his rank. The Russian outlet Fontanka reported that he was a colonel in the 6th Air and Air Defense Army, and Russian media said he was its chief navigator.
According to Fontanka, a remote-controlled bomb was attached under the vehicle and went off as he drove out of a courtyard. The Daily Beast, citing Fontanka, reports that investigators suspect a St. Petersburg man aged 31, who allegedly left for Turkey and then Moldova. In August, another soldier died when a vehicle blew up in the same area of the city.
Moscow accuses Kyiv of a series of killings of Russian military personnel. Ukraine has claimed some and stayed silent on others. On Thursday, Ukraine had not immediately commented.
Euronews reports that investigators have not tied this explosion to the war.
- 31-year-oldage of the St. Petersburg resident investigators suspect, per FontankaThe Daily Beast
- more than 40,000Russian troops killed or seriously wounded each month, per NATO's Mark RutteThe Daily Beast
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Liberal1 outlet
Colonel killed in Putin's hometown, suspect reportedly fled
The Daily Beast opens with a senior Russian colonel killed in a suspected car-bomb attack in Putin's hometown, and its headline calls it a "Hometown Humiliation." It relies on Fontanka for the details: a bomb under the car exploded after he had driven about 330 yards from his courtyard, and he served in the 6th Air Force and Air Defense Army. Russia's Investigative Committee, it says, confirmed a serviceman's death but did not name him or confirm his rank.
The outlet adds that the Ukrainian monitoring channel Supernova floated three possible names, all listed in Ukraine's Book of Executioners. Per Fontanka, investigators suspect a 31-year-old St. Petersburg resident, who allegedly fled to Turkey and then Moldova. The piece recalls the August killing of Major Sergey Sechkov in the same neighborhood, then turns to Russian losses, quoting NATO's Mark Rutte: "Here in one month, Russia, dead or seriously wounded, 40,000."
It closes by noting Trump's promise to end the war within "one day."
- The Daily Beast: Putin Military Leader Wiped Out in Hometown Humiliation
Center2 outlets
Latest in a series of attacks on officers
Euronews opens with the point that Kyiv rarely claims responsibility for attacks of this kind. It quotes the Investigative Committee: "A murder investigation into the serviceman's death has been launched." It then lists earlier attacks on Russian officers, from Lieutenant General Igor Kirillov in December 2024 to the August car explosion that killed Sergei Sechkov.
A second Euronews report says a passing bus had its windows shattered and that investigators have not established any link between Thursday's explosion and the war. Newsweek titles its piece "Russian Soldiers Keep Getting Blown Up by Car Bombs" and marks it a developing story. It cites Fontanka and the TV channel 78 for the colonel's post, says Russia has blamed Ukrainian secret services for such bombings, and names earlier victims including Lieutenant General Fanil Sarvarov and Damir Davydov.
Conservative1 outlet
Targeted killing: investigators' statement and scene footage
The New York Post runs a Reuters report under the headline "Car bomb kills Russian soldier in latest targeted assassination." It opens with investigators saying a serviceman died when the car he was driving was blown up in St. Petersburg's Pushkinsky District. It quotes the Investigative Committee saying authorities "opened a criminal case into the murder of a member of the armed forces."
The report describes video showing military police sealing off the area, and a bomb-damaged dark blue SUV standing near a bus that also appeared damaged. It says Ukrainian sources have claimed some such attacks and denied others, and that Ukraine had no immediate comment on Thursday. It notes that another serviceman died in a car explosion in that same district on August 27, and that car bombings have also occurred in Moscow and Crimea.
Fontanka's report that he held the rank of colonel is included, and Reuters says it could not independently verify that.
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- Rank of the serviceman killed in August
- The Daily Beast: Major
- Euronews, Newsweek: lieutenant colonel
- Date of the August car explosion
- The Daily Beast, Euronews, New York Post: August 27
- Newsweek: August 28
All sources: 5 articles from 4 outlets
Liberal (1)
- The Daily Beast: Putin Military Leader Wiped Out in Hometown Humiliation
Center (3)
- Euronews: Russia: Soldier killed in car explosion in Saint Petersburg
- Euronews: Russian officer killed by car bomb in St Petersburg as murder investigation begins
- Newsweek: Russian Soldiers Keep Getting Blown Up by Car Bombs
Conservative (1)
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