Russian artist and critic of Putin and Chechen leader shot dead in ⁠Poland

A Russian artist critical of Vladimir Putin was shot and killed in ⁠the eastern Polish town of Biała Podlaska, a Polish prosecutor has said.

Five shots were fired at the ⁠victim, including one ⁠to the head, in the attack on Monday, ​said Marcin Kozak, a spokesperson for the district prosecutor in Lublin.

Two Belarusians ⁠have been detained but not charged in connection with the case, he added.

Local media identified the victim as Robert ⁠Kuzovkov, who was also known by his artistic pseudonym Semyon Skrepetsky, a Russian ​artist and performer known for ‌his criticism of the Russian ‌leader.

Kozak confirmed that the victim, who prosecutors identified as Robert K, ‌had been engaged in artistic activity in which he expressed criticism of the current actions of Russian authorities.

Police officers in eastern Poland search the scene of the shooting. Photograph: Wojtek Jargiło/EPA Three days before he was killed, Skrepetsky had travelled to Berlin on Russia Day, a 12 June holiday marking the country’s declaration of sovereignty before the ‌collapse of the Soviet Union, where he staged a protest with an icon-like caricature of Joseph Stalin and Putin, according ​to the Meduza news outlet.

The identity of the victim would be a key element for the investigation, Kozak said.

Poland says its role as a hub for military and other supplies to Ukraine has made ⁠it a target for Russian spies trying to gather information on ​support for Kyiv’s ​effort to repel Russia’s invasion, ​as well as engage in acts of sabotage.

The Russian ​embassy in Warsaw ‌was not ​available for comment. ​Jacek Dobrzyński, a spokesperson for Poland’s special services minister, said the Internal Security Agency had been cooperating closely with police and prosecutors on the matter.