The Federal Security Service of Russia (FSB) announced that two individuals who were plotting an assassination attempt on the priest of the Russian Orthodox Church, Tikhon Shevkunov, referred to as the “priest Putin confessed to,” have been apprehended. The detained suspects confessed to receiving instructions from Ukraine.

In a statement released today by the Federal Security Service of Russia (FSB), it was declared that two suspects, Nikita Ivankovich and Denis Popovich, who worked at the church and were planning an assassination attempt on the priest Tikhon Shevkunov under the instruction of the Ukrainian military intelligence, were apprehended in a forested area where they had been hiding.

TWO INDIVIDUALS DETAINED

According to the FSB statement, “The 2 individuals who were apprehended confessed to being recruited by the Ukrainian intelligence service through the Telegram application in the middle of the year 2024.”

The statement reported the seizure of a homemade explosive device and 2 fake Ukrainian passports. It was mentioned that Nikita Ivankovich is a Russian priest serving in a Moscow church, while Denis Popovich, who is of Ukrainian origin, worked as an assistant to Shevkunov. TASKED WITH ELIMINATION The statement also mentioned, “Popovich confessed to being recruited to observe and monitor Shevkunov, and he was threatened to have his relatives killed if he did not comply. He was later tasked with finding an accomplice to ‘eliminate’ Shevkunov.” Popovich confessed that the plan he disclosed involved planting a bomb in a residential building in Sretensky Monastery in Moscow, where Shevkunov was a senior executive until 2018. Ivankovich, on the other hand, confessed to procuring a homemade bomb for the attack. “THE PRIEST PUTIN CONFESSED TO” The assassination attempt on 66-year-old Shevkunov, who is described by the Russian media as the “priest Putin confessed to,” was also condemned by the Kremlin in a statement. Kremlin Spokesperson Dmitriy Peskov stated, “The Kiev government is not afraid of anything. In this incident, nothing is sacred, which has been confirmed once again.” Kremlin emphasized that Putin and Shevkunov, who have known each other since the 1990s, have a good relationship. Shevkunov was appointed as Archbishop of Crimea in 2023, which Russia annexed in 2014.