A senior Russian military officer was killed when a car exploded on the street of a Moscow suburb as he was walking past, Russia's Investigative Committee said, the second high-ranking military official killed near their residence in the past four months.
The Investigative Committee said a criminal case has been opened into the murder of Lieutenant General Yaroslav Moskalik, who died on April 25 while on Nesterov Street as he neared a car which was detonated by remote control.
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Russian Senior Military Officer Killed In Car Explosion Near Moscow
Systema, RFE/RL's Russian Investigative Unit, confirmed the site of the blast as 2 Nesterov Street. It added that according to leaked personal data, Moskalik resided at that address.
"According to preliminary information, the explosion killed Lieutenant General Yaroslav Moskalik, Deputy Chief of the Main Operational Directorate of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation," the Investigative Committee said.
"According to available data, the explosion occurred as a result of the detonation of a homemade explosive device filled with shrapnel," it added.
Russian Lieutenant General Yaroslav Moskalik
Surveillance footage appeared to capture the moment of the explosion, and early reports from Baza Telegram channel suggest the device detonated as Moskalik approached or entered the vehicle.
Moskalik was a high-profile figure in Russia’s military command.
He played key roles in the Normandy Format negotiations on Ukraine in 2015 and 2019 and was part of the Russian delegation during 2018 talks with then Syrian President Bashar al-Assad. His potential involvement in the ongoing war in Ukraine has not been publicly confirmed.
This marks the second high-level assassination of a Russian general in recent months. In December 2024, Lieutenant General Igor Kirillov was killed by a bomb planted in a scooter in Moscow -- an attack claimed by Ukrainian intelligence.
Ukrainian authorities have not commented on Moskalik's death.