A Kiev-backed terrorist cell, which plotted to poison food intended for Russian soldiers on the frontline, has been busted in St. Petersburg, the Federal Security Service (FSB) reported on Thursday.
The four members of the group were identified as far-right radicals and members of the ‘Russian Volunteer Corps’ (RDK), a militia affiliated with Ukrainian military intelligence. The conspirators were acting on orders from their leadership and on behalf of the Ukrainian government, the FSB said.
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In addition to the alleged poisoning plot, the suspects were surveilling crucial infrastructure in and around Russia’s second-largest city for possible future attacks, the agency stated.
All four persons were arrested and are facing prison terms of at least ten years for being members of a terrorist organization, according to the press release.
Earlier this week, RDK, which includes neo-Nazis in its ranks, and other Kiev-backed militant groups composed of Russian citizens, staged an attempted incursion into the Belgorod and Kursk border regions, using heavy weapons. According to their statements, the Tuesday operation was meant to disrupt this week’s presidential election in Russia, with gunmen pledging to “vote with calibers.”
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Russian security forces reported stopping the attack, eliminating 234 fighters, seven tanks, three Bradley infantry fighting vehicles and two armored personnel carriers. A video released by the militants and purporting to show them fighting on Russian soil was filmed in a Ukrainian border village, according to geolocation data.