On the morning of August 27th, a car explosion incident occurred in the Pushkin District of St. Petersburg, Russia, resulting in the death of a Russian military colonel and severe injuries to his wife. The Russian Investigative Committee has launched an investigation into the matter.
According to local media Fontanka in St. Petersburg, witnesses reported that the military officer and his wife were preparing to leave their residence when the car suddenly exploded upon starting. The vehicle was severely damaged, with shattered windows, the hood and rear bumper blown off, the body of the car deformed, and debris scattered nearby.
The officer was killed on the spot, while his wife sustained serious injuries and was rushed to a nearby hospital for treatment. Reports indicated that she underwent amputation surgery on both legs.
Most of the housing near the explosion site is owned by the Russian Ministry of Defense, designated for use by Russian military personnel and their families.
The official identity of the deceased has not been publicly disclosed by Russian authorities. However, a telegram channel attributed to the father of the deceased confirmed that the victim was 43-year-old Russian military colonel Sergei Sechkov, who was “killed in the explosion.”
According to information released by the Ukraine Peace Initiatives project, Sechkov, born in Ryazan, served in the 332nd Independent Guard Helicopter Regiment of the Russian military with the rank of Major. This regiment is part of the Russian Aerospace Forces’ 6th Army Air Defense Forces.
In May 2022, the Ukrainian Defense Intelligence Directorate (GUR) accused this unit of carrying out missile and bomb attacks on Ukrainian civilians in the Slobozhanskyi direction near Kharkiv region.
An earlier report by 78.ru revealed that Sechkov had previously reported to his superiors that he had been “placed on a hit list.”
However, there is currently no public evidence linking this explosion to any Ukrainian involvement.
Regarding the perpetrator of the car bombing incident, Fontanka quoted sources indicating that a preliminary investigation showed a 24-year-old woman allegedly carried out the attack under instructions given through instant messaging software. On the evening of August 26th, she placed a homemade explosive device under the driver’s seat of the car, which detonated upon ignition.
After planting the bomb, the woman reportedly immediately traveled to Turkey and then possibly proceeded to Moldova. These claims have not been officially confirmed.
This incident marks the latest in a series of recent bomb attacks targeting Russian military personnel and the third in August.
On August 5th, an explosion occurred in the Mercedes car of Vladimir Tkachuk, head of the Russian unmanned aerial vehicle manufacturer Uraldrone, leaving him seriously injured and in intensive care, while the driver and bodyguard died on the spot. No organization has claimed responsibility so far, and Ukrainian involvement has not been acknowledged.
On August 13th, a Russian Navy officer died in an explosion in Crimea, later identified as Robert Shagiev by Russian authorities. He was a former Ukrainian Navy officer who switched allegiance to the Russian side after the annexation of Crimea in 2014. Both Russia and Ukraine have previously traded accusations regarding attacks on military personnel within each other’s territories, but the responsibility behind this incident remains undetermined.
Russian authorities have announced the arrest of a 32-year-old Russian woman in connection with the case, charged with carrying out an assassination as instructed by the Ukrainian intelligence agency and admitting to concealing the explosive device near a trash bin.