Defense Intelligence Service of Ukraine
Maxim Kuzminov was given the opportunity to stay in Ukraine after defecting but decided to go elsewhere, a Ukrainian intelligence source said.
CNN –
Maxim Kuzminov, a Russian pilot who dramatically flew his helicopter across the border into Ukraine, is dead, according to Ukraine's Defense Intelligence Agency (GUR).
The news comes after Spain's Civil Guard in Alicante province told CNN that a man was shot on February 13 in the parking garage of an apartment building in Villajoyosa, a Mediterranean seaside resort.
The Guardia Civil initially said the victim was a 33-year-old Ukrainian, but later said the identity of the body had yet to be established and was part of an investigation sealed by a judge.
A source at the Ukrainian GUR confirmed to CNN that the body of the man found in Spain was that of Kuzminov, but did not comment on how he died.
It is believed that the remains of the man shot dead in the garage are still in the province of Alicante under the supervision of forensic experts.
According to the press office of Villajoyosa City Hall, the shooting occurred in a neighborhood where some Russian and Ukrainian emigrants had settled since the start of the war.
Asked Tuesday whether Russia was aware of the death, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Moscow had no information on the matter.
The director of Russia's foreign intelligence service, Sergei Naryshkin, also did not comment directly on Kuzminov's death, but told reporters that the defector “became a moral corpse the moment he began to plan his dirty and terrible crime,” reported the Russian RIA Novosti.
Shortly after Kuzminov's defection, Russian television broadcast a segment about him on the program “Vesti Nedeli” that presented a clear threat to the defector's life. On the broadcast, a reporter said that Russia's own military intelligence had already received its order regarding Kuzminov, adding that “its fulfillment was only a matter of time.”
Later in the part, a man in military uniform, whose face can be seen obscured, says: “We can't allow something like that, we will punish him for such actions.”
The Freedom for Russia Legion – a group affiliated with the Ukrainian GUR made up of Russian nationals fighting for Ukraine – expressed condolences to Kuzminov's family and friends, saying he was a “real warrior and honest Man”.
“Ukraine fulfilled all its obligations to Maxim, he received the promised cash reward for the delivered equipment and had the opportunity to stay in Ukraine and live in peace, continue his service in one of the units of the Armed Forces of Ukraine or leave. “to the EU,” the Legion said in a statement.
Kuzminov defected in August after Kiev expelled his family from Russia undetected, GUR chief Kyrolo Budanov told Radio Liberty last year. Budanov said it was the first successful operation of its kind.
When Kuzminov flew to Ukraine, the two other Russian soldiers aboard the Mi-8 helicopter did not know what was happening. The couple were killed while trying to escape after realizing they had ended up in Ukraine.
“We would rather take them alive, but it is what it is,” Budanov said at the time.
In an interview published by GUR in September, Kuzminov reported on the defection. He told reporters he fled Russia because he was against the war.
“I contacted representatives of Ukrainian intelligence, explained my situation and offered them this option: 'Come, we guarantee your safety, guarantee new documents, guarantee financial compensation, a reward,'” the pilot said.
His defection apparently came at the last minute during a flight near the border.
After sharing his location, he said, “Let’s try, I’m not that far away.”
“After making a final decision, I flew at extremely low altitude in radio silence mode. Nobody understood what was wrong with me,” Kuzminov said.
CNN's Victoria Butenko and Andrew Carey reported from Kiev, Ukraine, and Al Goodman reported from Madrid