Russian Prosecutor’s Office finalizes indictment in Kerch Bridge explosion case, defendants to be tried in Rostov

The Russian Prosecutor General's Office has submitted its case regarding the Oct. 8, 2022 “terror attack” on the Kerch Bridge, which connects occupied Crimea to mainland Russia. The 2022 explosion led to the collapse of two vehicular spans of the bridge and killed five people, including the driver of the truck that detonated on its way from Russia into Crimea. According to the investigation, the driver did not know about the explosive device he was transporting.

The case has eight defendants: Artem and Georgy Azatyan, Oleg Antipov, Alexander Bylin, Vladimir Zlob, Dmitry Tyazhelykh, Roman Solomko, and Artur Terchanian. They are charged with committing a terror attack and with illegal acquisition of explosives. Solomko and Terchanian are additionally accused of smuggling explosive devices. All of the defendants are in custody. The case has been transferred to Russia’s Southern District Military Court.

According to the investigation, the attack was organized by the first deputy head of the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU), Vasyl Maliuk, who has been put on the wanted list. Malyuk allegedly created a criminal group, ordered the manufacture of an explosive device in Ukraine, and organized for its delivery to the bridge. The bomb was disguised as a load of construction film and transported in a truck. The explosion, equivalent to 10 tons of TNT, caused the detonation of fuel tanks on a train passing over the rail line of the bridge, causing significant damage. The damage was estimated at 200 to 500 million rubles ($1.9-4.7 million).

Two of the defendants in the case, Roman Solomko and Vladimir Zlob, were mentioned in a letter to the Zona Solidarnosti human rights group on Dec. 26, 2022. The letter’s author, Igor Paskar, was serving a sentence for burning a war propaganda banner. He became acquainted with the two Ukrainian truck drivers after they were assigned to his cell. As Paskar wrote at the time:

“We were transferred [to Rostov-on-Don] on Nov. 25. Two truck drivers from Ukraine — Roman Solomko and Vladimir Zlob — were transferred to the same compartment as I. They are facing charges of organizing the terrorist attack on the Crimean Bridge. Simply because those happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time, in the warehouse from which the kamikaze left. They could not be further from politics. Now they are being transferred to Lefortovo [in Moscow]. Apparently, the officials want a pat on the back from the Czar [Putin]. The guys are awesome hard-working men. I hope they do well.

They were first transferred from Sevastopol to Krasnodar. Ukrainian prisoners are said to be treated very harshly. Just one small detail: in the mornings, you can hear Ukrainian inmates shout the Russian anthem at the top of their lungs. One can only guess how they get them to do it.”

The investigation against Vasyl Maliuk and other “unidentified individuals” is continuing.