The Justice Department unsealed charges Tuesday against five people accused of working for Russian intelligence services in a global assassination network, including an alleged plot to kill a prominent Russian dissident believed to be living in the Washington, D.C. area.
The indictment, unsealed in federal court in Manhattan, names Russian national Yuri Khrameev, 63; his son Kirill Khrameev, 27; Cuban nationals Oemis Romagoza Durruthy and Yaidel Delgado Suarez, both 35; and 22-year-old Venezuelan national Angel Eduardo Castro. All five remain at large. Prosecutors allege Yuri Khrameev is a former Russian intelligence colonel and that his son is an officer in Russia’s Federal Security Service, or FSB.
What Happened
All five defendants are charged with conspiracy to finance terrorism, while Yuri Khrameev, Suarez and Castro face an additional charge of conspiracy to commit murder for hire. Prosecutors say the network’s efforts to recruit operatives and carry out targeted killings and sabotage on behalf of the Russian government date back to 2024, and that it operated as part of what officials described as a broader campaign of attacks and murders around the world, including within the United States.
According to the indictment, the network recruited a Venezuelan citizen living in Brooklyn between July and August of this year, paying him between $1,000 and $1,500 to photograph and film two locations associated with the Washington target. Prosecutors say the man carried out the surveillance but declined a subsequent offer of $40,000 from Suarez and Castro to “eliminate” or “disappear” the target himself; the recruiters then asked whether he knew someone else who could. A separate recruit was allegedly offered $25,000 the previous year to kill someone in Lithuania. The FBI said it had disrupted the plot, though officials did not detail how.
Latest Developments
Prosecutors said the network also allegedly conducted or commissioned attacks against civilian and military infrastructure in European countries seen as allied with Ukraine, targeting Russian dissidents and defectors as well as citizens of countries perceived to support Kyiv. Several of those countries, including Poland, Germany and Czechia, have separately accused Russia of sabotage operations on their territory in recent years, though the indictment does not tie those prior accusations directly to this case.
Key Facts
- Five people were charged in an indictment unsealed Tuesday in federal court in Manhattan, all remaining at large.
- All five face a conspiracy to finance terrorism charge; three also face a conspiracy to commit murder for hire charge.
- Prosecutors allege a Brooklyn-based recruit surveilled a Washington-area target and was offered $40,000 to kill him, which he declined.
- Yuri Khrameev is alleged to be a former Russian intelligence colonel; his son Kirill is alleged to be an FSB officer.
- The network is also accused of plotting attacks on civilian and military targets in European countries allied with Ukraine.
Reactions
Assistant Attorney General for National Security John Eisenberg said the defendants “allegedly operated as part of a global assassination network that reached into the United States, attempting to recruit U.S. citizens and foreigners to carry out killings at the behest of the Kremlin,” calling the conduct “a gross violation of our sovereignty and a threat to our national security.” The indictment itself describes the broader network as “brazen, aggressive, and far-reaching.” Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov declined to substantively address the allegations, saying Russian officials did not consider it necessary to comment without seeing credible evidence.
Background
The case adds to a series of accusations from Western governments in recent years that Russian intelligence services have conducted or directed sabotage, surveillance and assassination operations in Europe and North America, particularly targeting Kremlin critics and countries supporting Ukraine since Russia’s 2022 invasion. Attorney General Todd Blanche discussed the case at a news conference following the indictment’s unsealing, describing the alleged plot against the Washington-area target as part of the broader pattern prosecutors say the network engaged in.
Why It Matters
The specificity of the allegations, including a named dollar figure offered for an assassination on U.S. soil and an alleged FSB officer among the defendants, represents one of the more detailed public accounts of Russian intelligence activity targeting dissidents inside the United States. The case is likely to add further strain to an already tense relationship between Washington and Moscow, particularly given the network’s alleged targeting of countries supporting Ukraine.
What Happens Next
All five defendants remain at large, and it is unclear whether any are in Russia or elsewhere beyond U.S. law enforcement’s reach. Prosecutors have not indicated whether additional charges or defendants are expected as the investigation continues, and Russia’s government has not offered a substantive response to the specific allegations in the indictment.
Sources: NPR, Al Jazeera, NBC News, U.S. Department of Justice, Reuters (via U.S. News).
