Home · World · Sep 16 archive
US Charges 5 Suspects in Alleged Russian Assassination Network
Confirmed
In Short: The US Department of Justice has charged five individuals, including a Russian national and his son, for alleged involvement in a Russian intelligence-linked network targeting Ukraine's allies, according to prosecutors.
Prosecutors said that the group worked on behalf of Russian intelligence services to carry out attacks and murders around the world, according to Al Jazeera. The charges include conspiring to finance terrorism and, in some cases, conspiring to commit murder for hire.
Five suspects were identified: Russian national Yuri Khrameev, his son Kirill Khrameev, and Cubans Oemis Romagoza Durruthy and Yaidel Delgado Suarez, along with a 22-year-old Venezuelan, Angel Eduardo Castro, as per an indictment unsealed by the US Department of Justice.
Attorney General Todd Blanche stated at a news conference that the plots included attempts to kill a Russian dissident believed to be living in the Washington, DC area, while Justice Department officials said the network had recruited several people in the US to carry out surveillance on Russian dissidents, targeting individuals both domestically and in Lithuania.
The US has announced visa restrictions targeting people it accuses of discriminating against South Africa's white minority, escalating tensions between the two countries, according to the BBC. Moscow has consistently rejected accusations that it has orchestrated assassination operations on foreign soil, including in the US.
What's confirmed
- Prosecutors said that the group worked on behalf of Russian intelligence services to carry out attacks and murders around the world, according to Al Jazeera. The charges include conspiring to finance terrorism and, in some cases, conspiring to commit murder for hire.
- Five suspects were identified: Russian national Yuri Khrameev, his son Kirill Khrameev, and Cubans Oemis Romagoza Durruthy and Yaidel Delgado Suarez, along with a 22-year-old Venezuelan, Angel Eduardo Castro, as per an indictment unsealed by the US Department of Justice.
- Attorney General Todd Blanche stated at a news conference that the plots included attempts to kill a Russian dissident believed to be living in the Washington, DC area, while Justice Department officials said the network had recruited several people in the US to carry out surveillance on Russian dissidents, targeting individuals both domestically and in Lithuania.
- The US has announced visa restrictions targeting people it accuses of discriminating against South Africa's white minority, escalating tensions between the two countries, according to the BBC. Moscow has consistently rejected accusations that it has orchestrated assassination operations on foreign soil, including in the US.
What's still developing
- A separate recruit was allegedly offered $25,000 the previous year to kill someone in Lithuania.
- The Houthis’ rapid advance toward one of the world’s most important shipping chokepoints is putting fresh scrutiny on the sprawling financial network that has helped transform the Iran-backed group from a Yemeni insurgency into a heavily armed regional power capable of threatening global trade.
- The Houthis operate a financial network that extends far beyond Yemen, according to Adam Rousselle, founder of Between the Lines Research.
- At the center of that system is Sa’id al-Jamal, whom the Treasury Department has identified as an Iran-backed Houthi financial official operating an international network that sells Iranian commodities and channels proceeds toward the group.
- Treasury said in April 2025 that al-Jamal’s network had procured tens of millions of dollars in weapons, sensitive goods and commodities from Russia and identified eight digital-asset wallets used by the Houthis.
- "The system is more important than the number itself," he said, describing the network as fluid and difficult to quantify.
- Russia, he argued, has become a particularly significant part of the network.
- "The Russians are definitely more hands-on in their support," Rousselle said.