Russian military blogger Vladlen Tatarsky was killed, and a suspect has been charged with terrorism-related charges.
April 4, 2023Tweet
Russian authorities have formally charged Daria Trepova with terrorism offenses over the killing of Russian military blogger Vladlen Tatarsky. Investigators allege that Trepova, acting at the behest of Ukraine, brought a “statuette filled with explosives” to the venue and handed it to Tatarsky, who died in an explosion at a cafe in the center of St. Petersburg on Sunday. The Russian investigative committee has requested that Trepova remain in detention until June 2. Video shows interaction before blastMultiple videos show the moments leading up to the explosion. One 25-second video shows Tatarsky standing with the event’s host receiving an unexpected gift and taking a statuette out of a box.
A witness said Trepova gave the statuette to the event’s host, before moving to a different part of the room. Another clip, shot from further back in the room, appears to show an interaction between Trepova and Tatarsky before the blast. At least 32 people were injured in the blast, with 10 people in serious condition. Russia's interior ministry added Trepova to a wanted list and released a video of the suspect in custody, identified by Russian authorities as Trepova. In the video, a male voice asks the woman if she understands why she has been detained and she replies that she was detained for being at the scene of the murder of Tatarsky.
Her husband, Dmitry Rylov, told an independent Russian publication that he is convinced his wife was framed. According to Russian state news agency TASS, Trepova was arrested in the early days of Russia’s war in Ukraine for demonstrating against it, and sentenced to 10 days in prison. Her husband was a member of the Libertarian Party of Russia, but Trepova was not associated with the small political party and the Libertarian Party has denied she was ever a member or supporter.
Russian Tatarsky Trepova Ukraine