Overview
- The explosion occurred around 1:30 a.m. on Yeletskaya Street when two traffic police officers approached a suspicious individual near a service vehicle.
- Russia’s Interior Ministry identified the officers as Lt. Ilya Klimanov, 24, and Lt. Maksim (Maxim) Gorbunov, 25, with officials noting Gorbunov leaves a wife and 9‑month‑old daughter.
- The Investigative Committee is reviewing CCTV, questioning witnesses, and conducting medical, genetic, and explosives analyses after opening cases related to attempts on law enforcement lives and illegal explosives trafficking.
- The blast took place close to where Lt. Gen. Fanil Sarvarov was killed by a car bomb two days earlier, with Russian investigators considering possible Ukrainian special‑services involvement in that earlier attack and Ukraine offering no official comment.
- Ukrainian military intelligence sources claimed without presented evidence that the slain officers had abused Ukrainian prisoners of war and said a local resident carried out the attack, while unofficial Russian channels said the bomber died in the blast, claims not independently verified.