The Justice Department has brought charges against five suspected Russian intelligence operatives for allegedly plotting attacks against the Kremlin's perceived enemies around the world, including the murder-for-hire of at least one prominent dissident in the U.S.
The indictment, which was unsealed in federal court in Manhattan, says the defendants belong to a network that "is one arm of the Russian Federation's apparatus used to carry out external attacks, including murder, around the world." The network also allegedly conducted operations against civilian and military targets in European allies of Ukraine.
Russia launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022, and the two countries have been locked in a bloody war since then. Several European allies of Ukraine, including Poland, Germany and Czechia, have accused Russia of conducting sabotage attacks on their soil in recent years. Now, the U.S. is making similar allegations in a criminal indictment against specific, alleged Russian operatives.
"It is our job to stop America's adversaries from unleashing violence and terror on American soil," Attorney General Todd Blanche said. "And that's precisely what we are doing thanks to the work of the FBI and our Justice Department prosecutors."
Court papers identify two of the defendants as Yuri Khrameev, a former colonel in the Russian intelligence service, and his son, Kirill Khrameev, who is a suspected officer in Russia's FSB intelligence agency.
The other defendants are Oemis Romagoza Durruthy and Yaidel Delgado Suarez, both from Cuba, and Angel Eduardo Castro, who is from Venezuela. Prosecutors say all three men live in Russia.
The five defendants are charged with conspiracy to finance terrorism, while Yuri Khrameev, Suarez and Castro also face one count of murder-for-hire conspiracy. Officials say all of the defendants remain at large.
Venezuelan alleged to seek murder of Russian dissident
The indictment paints a detailed picture of the defendants' alleged efforts since 2024 to recruit and carry out a series of targeted killings and acts of sabotage on behalf of the Russian government.
One of the alleged plots took place between July and August 2026, when prosecutors say the network recruited a Venezuelan citizen, identified only as U.S. Resident 1, living in Brooklyn to surveil and murder a prominent Russian dissident in the U.S. The dissident is not named in court papers.
Prosecutors say Castro and Suarez used an encrypted messaging app to communicate with U.S. Resident 1, and gave him two addresses to surveil that were associated with the dissident. They also provided detailed instructions on how to take photos and videos of the locations.
Suarez allegedly stated the addresses were associated with someone they "want to eliminate they want to disappear," and offered $40,000 "for whoever does the work."
U.S. Resident 1 said he was willing to take photos and videos but not commit murder.
The indictment says Suarez then asked U.S. Resident 1 if he knew "someone who wants to do construction," which prosecutors say was code for "carrying out the murder."
Suarez allegedly stated that he was under pressure from his boss to get the job done. He also said that he had a team in Mexico who could do it but that they weren't immediately available.
U.S. citizen allegedly recruited in Lithuania
The indictment also chronicles a separate alleged plot in Europe in 2025 involving efforts to recruit a U.S. citizen to surveil and murder a Kremlin critic believed to be living in Vilnius, Lithuania.
In late June 2025, prosecutors say, the American met with Kirill Khrameev at the Estonia-Russia border, where Khrameev offered to pay the American, who is not named, to take photos of an address in Vilnius.
The American then kept in touch via an encrypted messaging app with Yuri Khrameev, who told him he needed to send photos or videos of the target's residence every two to three days, according to the indictment.
Court papers say Yuri Khrameev told the American that the individual was being targeted for "spreading dirt" about Russia and "telling the media and the common people that the Russians are the aggressors."
The indictment says the American was offered $25,000 to carry out the murder, which Khrameev said could be conducted by "throwing a bottle of gasoline" or "sticking a knife" in the victim, but the American declined, fearing he would easily be caught.
Yuri Khrameev then offered him a "simpler job," such as setting fire to a warehouse or electrical substation, according to prosecutors.
"I am interested in all the countries that are helping Ukraine," Khrameev allegedly wrote the American, adding that he was interested in targeting "military facilities and dual-use facilities… located in the countries of the NATO military bloc."
"Serious money for serious work"
"I'm offering serious money for serious work," he allegedly added.
The indictment appears to include details related to some other countries' allegations of Russian sabotage.
It says that Durruthy, one of the Cubans, played a role in coordinating travel and payment for terrorist acts, including in Prague.
The indictment says he transferred more than $1,000 in cryptocurrency to a "criminal associate" and booked hotels in the Czech Republic and in Poland for the associate. The indictment includes a photo pulled from an online account associated with Durruthy that prosecutors say appears to show potential attack sites in the Polish capital.
Copyright 2026 NPR
