Prominent Russian military blogger killed in St. Petersburg IED blast, suspect identified

YEREVAN, APRIL 3, ARMENPRESS. Russian war correspondent Maksim Fomin – better known under the pen name Vladlen Tatarsky – was killed in a suspected IED explosion in a café in downtown St. Petersburg on Sunday afternoon. 32 other people were injured in the blast in the ‘Street Bar,’ according to Russian authorities.

Tatarsky rose to prominence as a military blogger after Russia launched what it describes as “a special military operation” in Ukraine, which Kiev and many Western countries say is an unprovoked aggression.

On Sunday, Tatarsky was hosting a live event for his supporters at the St. Petersburg café.

Authorities believe that Tatarsky may have been killed by an improvised explosive device disguised as a statuette handed over to him by a young woman during the event, RT reports.

Reacting to the bombing, Russian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova said Russian journalistsface constant death threats from“the Kiev regime and its abettors.” Tatarsky was a“danger"and“provoked the hatred of the Kiev regime”withhisprofessional activities,Zakharova claimed.

On April 3, Russian authorities identified the suspect in Sunday’s bombing as Darya Trepova.

Trepova is at large.