INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
A bomb explosion that killed a pro-Kremlin paramilitary leader from eastern Ukraine may have been a suicide attack, Russian media reported
Tuesday, pointing out law enforcement sources.Armen Sarkisyan, creator of the Arbat Battalion, which defends Russia in Ukraine, passed away
from his injuries after being hospitalized Monday
Another individual was also killed, and four others were wounded in the blast.The leading theory is that the explosion in the Scarlet Sails
residential complex was committed by a suicide bomber, the Interfax news agency priced estimate an unnamed law enforcement authorities as
saying.Early indications are that he detonated an explosive gadget that he brought with him.Surveillance video footage supposedly revealed a
Soviet-era anti-personnel mine taking off near a man who greeted Sarkisyan in the structure lobby, the Kommersant business daily, likewise
pointing out police sources, reported.Initial unproven reports suggested the bomb might have been planted in the corridor before the attack
Fingerprint information suggests the believed bomber might have been an Armenian national with a prior criminal conviction, according to
Kommersant.Authorities are examining a power struggle or blood feud as a possible intention, Interfax reported
If evidence of Ukrainian involvement emerges, the case may be reclassified as a terrorism investigation.Kyivissuedan arrest warrant for
Sarkisyan in 2014 over violence versus pro-EU protesters
Ukraines SBU security servicesdescribedhim as a criminal authority with connections to former president Viktor Yanukovych, who fled to
HisArbat Battalion, which combats as an irregular on the side of Russia in its war against Ukraine, is made up of around 500 individuals,
the majority of whom are ethnic Armenians.In December, Ukraine noted Sarkisyan as a suspect in a continuous investigation into Russias
recruitment of detainee fighters for the war.
