Russian Artist Who Criticized Putin Gunned Down in Poland

A Russian artist who was a vocal critic of President Vladimir Putin and performed anti-Kremlin performances was killed in an execution-style shooting in Poland.Polish prosecutors said Robert Kuzovkov, known by the pseudonym Semyon Skrepetsky, was shot at least five times in the mouth, head, chest, and back on Monday at the eastern city of Biała Podlaska.The District Prosecutor’s Office at Lublin said two Belarusian citizens were detained near the Belarusian consulate in the city but their connection to the crime was unclear.“An unknown individual approached him and shot him twice. After the victim collapsed to the ground, the shooter approached, fired three more shots, and then quickly fled the scene,” the prosecutor’s office spokesman, Marcin Kozak, told local media. Kuzovov died at the scene.Five shell casings and a bullet were found at the scene. Police were still interviewing witnesses and going through evidence.Kuzovkov painted caricatures of politicians, including Mr. Putin, Belarusian leader Alexander Lukashenko, and Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov, the BBC reported. He demonstrated last week outside the Russian embassy at Berlin. Kuzovkov dragged a Russian flag behind him as he marched with a painting of Stalin feeding a baby-like Mr. Putin.Shortly before his murder, Kuzovkov wrote a post on his Telegram channel saying the protest was popular with “Russian patriots” but he had received threats over it. Belarusian artist-activist Uladzislau Bokhan told the news outlet Belsat that Kuzovkov had been receiving threats for several months.Local news outlets reported that Kuzovkov had lived at Biała Podlaska with his wife and children since 2021. Polish media reported that security was being increased outside Kuzovkov’s children’s schools following the murder. An autopsy was scheduled for Wednesday.Police in Lithuania, last month said, they broke up a Russian-linked group that plotted murders and sabotage across Europe. Some of the intended targets were activists who had fled Russia. Nine people were arrested in that case.Dozens of former associates and critics have been targeted in poisonings, shootings, and defenestrations since Mr. Putin came to power more than 26 years ago. It is difficult to put a number on the killings because many are never solved and are listed as accidents and suicides. The CBS news show “60 Minutes” reports more than 60 mysterious deaths of Mr. Putin’s enemies in Russia and Europe since the Ukraine war.

Russian Artist Who Criticized Putin Gunned Down in Poland

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