The US Department of Justice announced charges against five men accused of involvement with Russian Intelligence Services in connection with plots to murder individuals perceived as aligned with Ukraine. Three of the defendants are described as high-ranking members of the RIS network, including Russian national Yuri Khrameev, a former colonel in Russian intelligence, his son Kirill Khrameev, an officer in the Federal Security Service of Russia, and Oemis Romagoza Durruthy, a Cuban national described as influential in the Cuban diaspora in Russia. The other two defendants are Yaidel Delgado Suarez and Angel Eduardo Castro. All five remain at large, and their locations are unclear.
The charges allege that the group conspired to finance terrorism, with maximum sentences of 20 years for that charge. Three of the defendants face additional charges of conspiracy to commit murder for hire, carrying a maximum 10-year sentence. According to the DoJ, the group allegedly attempted to recruit US-based individuals to surveil and kill a prominent Russian dissident within the United States during this summer. Suarez is said to have directed a recruit to two locations associated with the victim and offered between $1,000 and $1,500 for surveillance, with an additional $40,000 offered for the victim’s death. The DoJ stated that the recruit did not proceed with the plot.
The charges describe additional alleged incidents targeting those perceived as threats to Russia. In 2025, Khrameev junior allegedly recruited a US citizen to kill someone in Lithuania described as spreading false information about Russia. Khrameev senior allegedly offered $25,000 for this killing. FBI officials stated the group conspired to intimidate, threaten, or murder people across US soil and internationally. The Kremlin declined to comment on the charges, with spokesman Dmitry Peskov stating that Moscow awaits credible evidence and tangible facts.
This case follows other recent incidents involving alleged Russian plots against perceived enemies. Last month, Polish authorities detained an individual allegedly working for the Kremlin accused of plotting to murder an American-Ukrainian citizen in Warsaw. In 2024, German authorities received warnings from US intelligence regarding an alleged Russian plot against Armin Papperger, head of Germany’s largest arms company, though Moscow denied those accusations at the time.
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