Polish authorities announced Thursday that they have arrested a man suspected of carrying out the fatal shooting of a Russian activist who had been a vocal critic of President Vladimir Putin.
The suspect, a 36-year-old man traveling on a passport from the former Soviet republic of Georgia, was identified by Interior Minister Marcin Kierwiński during a press conference held in Warsaw.
The victim, Robert Kuzovkov — who went by the pseudonym Semyon Skrepetsky — was shot at close range on Monday in the eastern Polish city of Biala Podlaska, located near the border with Belarus. The shooting occurred in the middle of the day, close to where Kuzovkov lived.
Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk addressed the incident Wednesday, stating that the circumstances surrounding the death point strongly toward a deliberate political killing.
“Everything points to this being a political murder,” Tusk said. “But we must wait for evidence or more concrete indications. Because if that was the case — if it was ordered by Russia — then it is an extremely serious matter internationally. It would constitute state terrorism.”
