Overview
- Lithuanian authorities, who on Monday detailed the case, said 13 people are charged, nine are detained, and warrants are issued for four more.
- The probe began after target Ruslan Gabbasov found a tracking device on his car early last year and alerted police.
- Officials say the planned killings targeted Ukraine fundraiser Valdas Bartkevičius and exiled Bashkir activist Gabbasov in Vilnius.
- Police linked the organizers to Russia’s GRU and cited related acts that included arson against Ukraine-bound equipment in Bulgaria and espionage targeting the Greek military.
- Prosecutors say the network spanned several EU states, recruited operatives from multiple countries, and moved money through false-identity accounts, with arrests and transfers to Lithuania still underway.