Sources close to the investigation of the Spanish agency EFE have confirmed that the man shot dead in a garage in Villajoyos on 13 February was a Russian pilot Maxim Kuzminov, who had hijacked a Mi-8 helicopter of the Russian Armed Forces to Ukraine. According to the agency, the documents found on him are believed by the investigation to be forged.
Europa Press, citing sources in the Civil Guard, reported about an additional investigation to find out the identity of the murdered man. The media wrote about the found body of a 33-year-old Ukrainian (while Maxim Kuzminov is 28 years old and a Russian citizen). EFE’s interlocutors wrote that this conclusion was made on the basis of the documents found with him, which “do not correspond to reality”.
According to EFE, the man was shot about six times and, according to the preliminary conclusions of the investigation, his body was driven over by a car in which the perpetrators of the murder later fled. The death of Maxim Kuzminov was confirmed the day before by the Main Directorate of Intelligence of the Ministry of Defence of Ukraine. Before that, the media reported about him.
In September 2023, the head of the GUR Kirill Budanov said that Ukrainian intelligence managed to convince a Russian serviceman to land a Russian armed forces Mi-8 helicopter on the territory of Ukraine. Later, Maxim Kuzminov spoke at a press conference in Kiev, where he explained his decision with a negative attitude towards the military operation. The GUR said that after some time, Maksym Kuzminov moved to Spain.
