A senior general from the Russian Armed Forces’ General Staff lost his life in a car explosion east of Moscow on Friday, as confirmed by police investigators.
“Preliminary reports suggest that Lieutenant General Yaroslav Moskalik was killed in the blast,” stated a spokeswoman for Russia’s Investigative Committee, which is responsible for investigating significant criminal cases.
“Initial findings indicate that the explosion was triggered by an improvised explosive device filled with shrapnel,” the law enforcement agency reported, noting that detectives and forensic teams were currently examining the explosion site in Balashikha, a suburb of Moscow.
Authorities have launched a murder investigation alongside an inquiry into the unlawful trafficking of explosives. Officials did not disclose whether any suspects have been identified.
Initially, state media claimed that a parked vehicle exploded due to a gas leak. Security footage released by pro-Kremlin outlets captured a powerful blast occurring near an apartment building as a pedestrian walked by the car.
Moskalik, who was 59, held the position of deputy chief of the Main Operational Directorate of the Russian General Staff. This directorate is tasked with planning military operations and ensuring combat readiness.
The pro-Kremlin Telegram channel Mash reported that his vehicle had changed hands at least three times since late January, with the latest purchaser identified as a 40-year-old from the northeastern Ukrainian city of Sumy.
The Moscow Times has not been able to independently verify Mash’s statements.
Since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in 2022, numerous Russian military officials, pro-war activists, Ukrainian defectors, and Kremlin-appointed leaders in occupied Ukraine have been the targets of assassination schemes.
In December, Lieutenant General Igor Kirillov and his aide were killed while leaving a Moscow apartment early in the morning when an explosive device attached to a nearby scooter detonated.
At that time, Kirillov was the highest-ranking Russian military officer assassinated since the onset of the full-scale invasion.
Correction: An earlier version of this article incorrectly referred to Moskalik as a major general.
