The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) has reported the prevention of an alleged conspiracy to assassinate a well-known Russian dissident who, investigators believe, resides in the Washington area. According to an indictment unsealed by a federal court in New York, five individuals outside the United States are involved in the case. The American prosecution claims that three of them are high-ranking officials in Russian intelligence services. According to the investigation, since 2024, members of the network have been recruiting people in the U.S. and other countries to monitor Russian dissidents and subsequently planned their assassinations. The indictment also claims that the perpetrators were offered to organize sabotage and terrorist attacks against civilian and military infrastructure in European countries supporting Ukraine. As indicated in the case materials, a resident of Brooklyn was recruited to prepare the assassination in the U.S. He was tasked with surveilling the alleged victim, for which he was paid small amounts. Later, he was offered $40,000 for the assassination of the dissident, but he declined. After that, investigators claim, the organizers attempted to find other perpetrators. It was the refusal of the potential perpetrator and the subsequent actions of the FBI, according to American authorities, that allowed the plan to be thwarted. FBI officials in New York and Washington stated that the conspiracy was disrupted thanks to the collaborative efforts of several regional offices of the bureau and other law enforcement agencies. According to the investigation, this network was previously focused on Russian dissidents and defectors, and after the onset of the full-scale war by Russia against Ukraine, it expanded its targets to include countries supporting Kyiv. All five defendants remain at large. The Russian side had not commented on the charges at the time of publication.
