A Striking Ovation in Admiration of a Russian War Blogger

"We will defeat everyone, we will kill everyone, we will rob everyone as necessary. Just as we like it."

Russian War Blogger Maxim Fomin

 

"[My wife was against the war in Ukraine, but] she would never kill."

"I believe my wife was framed. I'm pretty sure she would never have been able to do something like that on her own."

"Together with Daria we really do not support the war in Ukraine, but we believe that such actions are unacceptable."

"I am 100% sure that she would never have agreed to this if she had known."

Dmitry Rylov, Trepova's husband

"[The attack was] planned by the special services of Ukraine with the involvement of agents from those who had cooperated with the so-called Navalny anti-corruption fund [foundation]."

Russia's anti-terrorism commission 

"[The Russian opposition had shown its] true face [and should be] exterminated.”

"Don’t negotiate with terrorists. They should be exterminated like rabid dogs with poisonous saliva flowing from their mouths …"

"Forgiveness and compassion are not applicable to them. This is what the highest justice is."

Dmitry Medvedev, deputy chair, security council

“It’s even strange that we have to write and say this, but no, the FBK is not involved in the murder of propagandist Vladlen Tatarsky."

Lyubov Sobol, Navalny ally

Vladlen Tatarsky with the statuette shortly before it exploded, killing him

At a cafe, Street Food Bar No 1 near the River Neva in St.Petersburg, once owned by Yevgeny Prigozhin -- who runs Russia's notorious Wagner mercenary group which has taken part in much of the fighting in Bakhmut in eastern Ukraine -- fans of an aggressive anti-Ukraine, pro-war military blogger, born in Donetsk of Russian origins, was being lionized by his many admirers.A woman in the crowd of people stepped forward and handed him a boxed gift, a likeness of the blogger who, in a video, looked enormously pleased.

Darya Trepova, a 26-year-old Russian woman is now in confinement, accused of murdering blogger Vladlen Tatarsky, who used the name Maxim Fomin as a cheerleader for the Russian invasion of Ukraine, though he criticized the Russian military as "untrained", in frustration over the losses that Moscow has experienced with effective Ukrainian military counteroffensives. He subscribed to a burnt-earth-slaughter-everyone philosophy.

A police video has Ms. Trepova admitting under questioning that she delivered the lethal bomb that was the death of the blogger. Over 30 other people were injured in the explosion. Her confession, released by the interior ministry, was that she had brought the figurine of a Tatarsky likeness to the cafe, that soon afterward exploded. According to Russian media, she informed investigators that she had been set up, and had not been aware the figurine contained a bomb.

 

On Monday, Tatarsky was awarded the posthumous Order of Courage by President Vladimir Putin.   Vladlen Tatarsky/Telegram

 

A closed-circuit video showed footage of the young woman carrying the package into the cafe where supporters of Russia's war in Ukraine were gathered. On handing the figurine to Tatarsky, he is seen admiring the gift, handling it, his head lowered over it, and then lifting it forward, showing it off to his audience. Which was when the explosive in the figurine did its deadly work.

This represents the second instance where within Russia, key supporters of the war in Ukraine were killed through stealth connivance by anti-Kremlin, anti-war mystery figures. Darya Dugina, daughter of a prominent nationalist ideologue was killed by a car bomb outside Moscow last summer. Tatarsky had over a half-million followers on the Telegram messaging service. a celebrated pro-war presence..

He messaged that there was a need to "kill everyone" and "rob everyone" in Ukraine to enable Russia to complete its mission in Ukraine. It is now dawning on Russian commentators that the bombing is evidence that violence stemming from the Russian invasion of Ukraine is spilling into Russian territory. The Ukrainian intelligence services, according to Russia's National Anti-terrorism Committee, was behind organizing the bombing aided by supporters of imprisoned Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny.

A suspicion that arose with the revelation that the accused woman  under arrest had registered at one time to participate in an anti-Kremlin tactical voting scheme that was promoted by Navalny's political movement. Most of Navalny's allies are now abroad, having fled when their movement was branded 'extremist' by the Kremlin. According to the Kremlin, Tatarsky's murder is a "terrorist act.The active phase of the investigation is now underway", Dmitry Peskov, Kremlin spokesman stated.

 

Darya Trepova declined to say who gave her the statuette but Russian authorities have blamed opposition figures   Russian interior ministry