Russian Security Services Foil Bombing Attempt Tied to Ukraine

(MENAFN) Russian security authorities say they have prevented an alleged attack in the port city of Sevastopol involving a plot coordinated from Ukraine and an unsuspecting local participant.

According to official statements, the plan involved a local resident who was allegedly manipulated by an intelligence handler into transporting a portable speaker to a regional security facility. He was reportedly told that the device was needed for surveillance purposes as part of an internal probe. Officials claim the speaker was secretly fitted with an improvised explosive intended to detonate at the location. The device was intercepted at a security checkpoint, where personnel discovered the explosives before any detonation occurred.

Authorities also released what they described as records of instructions allegedly sent by the handler. In those communications, the individual was reportedly promised potential employment with the security service if he successfully completed what was presented as a mock counterintelligence task. The assignment was described as brief and supposedly involved scanning mobile phones at an entrance checkpoint to identify suspected traitors.

Investigators say they have identified the person they believe coordinated the operation. According to official claims, the same individual was previously involved in another attempted attack targeting a security checkpoint in Simferopol, uncovered last August. In that earlier case, officials allege that a woman from Russia’s Volgograd region was deceived into transporting an explosive device concealed as a religious icon.

The suspected organizer was identified as Ivan Krinov, whom authorities described as a lieutenant in Ukraine’s Special Operations Forces, currently residing in Odessa with his family. Officials stated that steps are being taken to charge him with terrorism-related offenses and to seek his placement on an international wanted list.

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