Law enforcement officers prevented FSB plans to eliminate Serhiy Filimonov, commander of the 108th separate battalion "Wolves of Da Vinci", the Security Service of Ukraine and the Prosecutor General's Office reported on Tuesday, writes UNN.
Details
"The Security Service of Ukraine prevented the contract killing of Serhiy Filimonov, commander of the 108th separate battalion of the Armed Forces of Ukraine "Wolves of Da Vinci". According to the case materials, the assassination attempt was prepared by the FSB," the SBU reported.
According to the Prosecutor General's Office, the Russian special service recruited a resident of Dnipropetrovsk region, posing as the SBU. "He was informed about a fabricated case of 'state treason' and, blackmailed with arrest, was forced to agree to 'cooperation'," the prosecutor's office said.
The SBU emphasized: agent operations "under a false flag" are a fairly new tactic for the Russian special service. "During recruitment conversations, FSB representatives pose as Security Service employees and assign tasks to agents allegedly in the interests of Ukraine. It was on such a 'hook' that an ATO participant from Kamianske fell, who was sure that on the instructions of the SBU he had to neutralize a spotter working for the Russian Federation, and not a Ukrainian military commander," the SBU reported.
In order to increase psychological pressure, according to the SBU, FSB representatives sent the man a fake summons for questioning to the SBU. After that, he was offered alleged "cooperation" with the Service in exchange for closing the criminal case. For this, the person involved was sent an application form for admission to the SBU and instructed to come to Kyiv.
"FSB curators manipulated the patriotic convictions of the Ukrainian, who sincerely believed that he was helping the Ukrainian special service fight the enemy. In correspondence with his liaison, the man expressed his readiness to destroy the occupiers - even at the cost of his own life," the SBU said.
According to the Prosecutor General's Office, in Kyiv, the person involved rented an apartment in a residential complex where, according to the enemy, the Ukrainian commander lived. He was supposed to monitor him, send photo reports and coordinates.
"Upon arrival in Kyiv, the recruited person was given the task: to rent an apartment in a residential complex where, according to the FSB, the Ukrainian military commander who was planned to be eliminated lived, and to start tracking Serhiy Filimonov's car," the SBU added.
At the same time, an FSB officer, according to the SBU, presented the Ukrainian military as a "traitor" who allegedly directs strikes on Kyiv. After one of the massive missile strikes on the capital, the curator convinced the person involved that the "object" he was tracking was responsible for it, the SBU reported.
"The recruited person regularly sent the curator photo reports of visual observation: photos from the house yard and a description of the military's movements," the SBU indicated.
As reported by the Prosecutor General's Office, the recruited person was subsequently given the coordinates of a cache with an AK-74 assault rifle on the outskirts of Kyiv. After receiving the weapon, the person involved was instructed to eliminate the Ukrainian soldier.
"SBU operatives detained the recruited person when he was going out into the street with a loaded weapon," the special service reported.
"Thanks to the coordinated actions of law enforcement officers, the crime against the serviceman of the "Wolves of Da Vinci" unit was prevented," the prosecutor's office emphasized.
During the search, his mobile phone, from which the person involved corresponded with the FSB curator, was seized.
Under the procedural guidance of the Prosecutor General's Office, the detainee was notified of suspicion under Article 263 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine – illegal storage of weapons and ammunition.
"The SBU emphasizes! Security Service representatives do not hire people by phone, do not offer to commit illegal actions, and do not set dubious tasks. The SBU acts exclusively within the framework of the current legislation of Ukraine," the special service stressed.