The Russian authorities announced the completion of the repair of the bridge across the Kerch Strait
On February 23, the Russian authorities announced the completion of the repair of the bridge across the Kerch Strait. It was blown up in mid-autumn, about 250 meters of the roadway collapsed, and 5 people died. In fact, only the automobile part has been repaired, one of the two railway lines is planned to be repaired in another six months.
The explosion on the bridge occurred on the morning of October 8. A truck with explosives exploded on the automobile part, the investigation insists. Then a train loaded with fuel caught fire passing over the bridge. The President of Russia, Vladimir Putin, called what happened a terrorist act and said that its perpetrators and customers were the Ukrainian special services. Kyiv has repeatedly stated that it considers the bridge a legitimate military target, but has not taken responsibility for what happened.
Eight people have been arrested in Russia on charges of planning an explosion. All of them were detained within a week after the incident. Lawyers for six of the eight defendants said that investigators chose “a set of random people” as the perpetrators, the BBC reports. (Defenders of the other two defendants did not comment on the case to the channel).
Among those arrested is Artur Terchanyan, a 37-year-old citizen of Armenia, a truck driver, whom the investigation suspects of transporting explosives before detonating the bridge. Another accused is Roman Solomko, a Ukrainian farmer from Kherson, who is said to have planned the operation. The FSB calls Vladimir Zlob, a grain supplier from Kherson, a liaison between the organizer and the executors.
The owner of a warehouse in Armavir, Georgy Azatyan, and his younger brother, Artyom Azatyan, are accused of possessing explosives. Two more suspects, Aleksandr Bylyn and Oleg Antipov, were engaged in cargo transportation and product deliveries — they were accused of preparing the logistics of the explosion. Lipetsk businessman Dmytro Tyazhelykh rented out virtual SIM cards before his arrest, the prosecution believes that he gave “the organizers of the terrorist act the opportunity to negotiate.”
At least six defendants were first questioned by the FSB right after the bridge was blown up and released without any charges. None of them asked to hide, all actively cooperated with the special services. According to the article about the terrorist attack, which was raised in Russia, they may face up to 20 years in prison.
