A senior Russian Aerospace Forces officer was shot and wounded in the southern Saratov region, law enforcement authorities and Russian media reported Thursday.
The Investigative Committee, Russia’s top investigative body, said it opened a criminal probe into attempted murder and arms trafficking following “an attempt on the life of a serviceman” in the city of Engels.
“Cartridge casings and bullets from a firearm were recovered at the scene,” the Investigative Committee said in a statement.
The officer was airlifted to a military hospital in Moscow, law enforcement sources told the newspaper Kommersant.
While authorities did not immediately identify the officer, unverified reports claimed the victim to be Major General Nikolai Varpakhovich, who heads a strategic bomber division at Engels-2 airbase.
