Kirill Budanov caught in the crosshairs of the Russian judiciary. A Moscow court has namely a warranty addressed to the Head of Ukraine’s Military Intelligence (Gur) for the attack on the Kerch Bridge in Crimea, dating back to October 8. Budanov was accused terrorism by the Lefotovo District Court, which placed him on the international wanted list and ordered his arrest in absentia.
Moscow Prosecutor’s Office
In recent months, the Russian secret service (FSB) has accused the GUR of planning the attack and carrying it out by detonating a truck bomb. Now the cold shower has come for the head of the Ukrainian military 007, who is blamed for the explosion on the Kerch bridge that killed four people.
Information on the Budanov case is published by Russian judicial authorities on the portal of the courts of general jurisdiction of Moscow. According to reports from Russian authorities, the coercive measure addressed to the high-ranking Kiev official is valid for two months from the moment of his extradition to the territory of the Russian Federation or his detention on Russian territory.
In particular, Budanov is accused under Part 1 of Art. 205.4 (Organization of a terrorist community), Part 1 of Art. 30 and page “a” part 2 of art. 205 (act of terrorism), part 3 of art. 222 and Part 3 of Art. 222.1 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation (illegal operations with explosives). In other words, the man was charged by the Russian court terrorist actcreation of a terrorist communityillegal trade in explosive And weapons.
The Crimean Bridge Bombing
Already on October 12, 2022, the FSB had identified Kirill Budanov as the organizer of the explosion on the Crimean bridge. In February 2023, the participation of Ukrainian special services in the terrorist attack. This brings us to the final step of the Lefotovo District Court.
In the summer of 2023, the head of the Ukrainian channel 007 spoke in an interview with the Financial Times about the guerrilla warfare in the Ukrainian territories controlled by the Russian army, mentioning in particular the explosion of cars belonging to representatives of the administration in the Kherson regions.
Coming back to the Crimean bridge bombing, on October 8, 2022, an explosive device was detonated on the vehicle part of the bridge, hidden in rolls of construction polyethylene film and placed on 22 pallets with a total weight of almost 22.8 tons. A TRUCK The transport of pallets was up in the air. As a result of the explosion, a combustible train caught fire. Four people were killed and the bridge damaged. Car traffic on all lanes of the Crimean Bridge fully reopened on February 23, more than a month ahead of schedule. The restoration work on the railway section is still being completed.
Who is Kirill Budanov?
Recall that in 2020 Kirill Budanov (his profile here) was appointed head of the Ukrainian intelligence service. He studied at the Odessa Military Academy, and then served in the special forces of the Main Intelligence Directorate. In 2014 he fought in Donbass, where he received several military awards and wounds. In 2019 he survived an assassination attempt.
In July 2023, President of Ukraine appointed Volodymyr Zelenskyy Budanov to head the Presidential Intelligence Committee. With this appointment, Budanov became the de facto main coordinator of the work of all Ukrainian intelligence agencies.