By Yasin Gungor
ISTANBUL (AA) - Russian authorities detained a suspect Saturday in connection with a car bombing that killed a high-ranking military officer near Moscow, the Investigative Committee announced.
Lt. Gen. Yaroslav Moskalik, deputy chief of the Main Operations Directorate of the General Staff of the Russian Armed Forces, was killed Friday morning when an explosive device detonated inside a vehicle in Balashikha, a town near the capital.
The Investigative Committee said the detained suspect confessed to carrying out the attack. According to investigators, the suspect said he was recruited in 2023 by Ukrainian special services and acted on the instructions of his handler.
Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova earlier said that Moscow has "reason to believe" Ukrainian special services were involved in the killing.
Ukraine did not immediately comment on the allegations.
The Investigative Committee initially opened a criminal case for murder and illegal trafficking in explosives. It was later reclassified as a terrorist act and illegal trafficking in explosives.