A Russian defector pilot, who flew to Ukraine in a military helicopter and was later killed in a Spanish seaside town, is buried in an unmarked grave in southern Spain, US news network CBS has reported, citing unnamed sources.
In August 2023, Maxim Kuzminov hijacked a Russian Mi-8 cargo helicopter in exchange for a reward of $500,000 from Ukrainian intelligence. His two fellow Russian crew members were reportedly “liquidated” upon arrival.
The pilot was reportedly given a Ukrainian passport and moved to Spain, where he stayed under an alias in the resort town of Villajoyosa. In February 2024, Kuzminov’s body was discovered in the garage of the apartment complex where he lived, riddled with bullets and run over by a car.
The US broadcaster also claimed to have uncovered the mystery of the defector’s photos popping up on social media in the summer, almost six months after his death. The images showed a man, looking exactly like Kuzminov, attending an air show.
According to CBS, it was likely a Ukrainian intelligence officer wearing a mask and other disguises to make him resemble the late defector. The stunt was apparently part of a misinformation campaign by Kiev aimed at “making the world think Kuzminov had survived the assassination attempt and was still working for Ukraine – a signal to other Russians that they would be safe if they too defected,” it explained.
The broadcaster claimed that Moscow may have been involved in the killing of the defector, saying that a source close to the Spanish investigation provided it with photos of two “persons of interest” in the case. CBS said it had identified one of them as a former KGB officer and another as his relative, a Russian police colonel.
The Spanish civil guard, which is investigating Kuzminov’s killing, has not made any public announcements about its probe.
In late February, Russian Foreign Intelligence Service chief Sergey Naryshkin called the defector a “traitor and criminal” who became “a corpse” the moment he carried out his betrayal. However, Naryshkin did not take responsibility for Kuzminov’s death.
“To a dog, a dog’s death,” Dmitry Medvedev, former president and current deputy head of the National Security Council, said when asked about the defector’s fate.
On Monday, Russia’s Federal Security Service (FSB) announced that its operative had uncovered and thwarted a Ukrainian attempt to hijack a Russian Mi-8MTPR-1 Rychag electronic warfare helicopter. Instead of accepting a bribe of $750,000 from Kiev, the pilots contacted the Russian security services, the statement read. During the subsequent operation, the locations of Ukrainian units and air defenses were identified and later targeted by Russian forces, the FSB said.