Car bombing that killed Russian nuclear plant official hailed by Ukraine (VIDEO)

An explosive device was put under a vehicle of an official at Zaporozhye nuclear power plant, investigators have said

A senior security staff member of Zaporozhye nuclear power plant – the biggest such facility in Europe – was killed in a car explosion on Friday morning, the Russian Investigative Committee has said. Law enforcement officials also published a video from the scene showing the vehicle’s wreckage.

According to the investigative committee, an improvised explosive device had been planted under the personal vehicle of Andrey Korotky. The device detonated soon after he got into his car, the officials said.

Korotky succumbed to his injuries in hospital, the committee added. He had headed one of the security departments at the nuclear power station, and had previously served as the local council head in the nearby town of Energodar.

A clip published by the investigators on Telegram shows a white crossover that is visibly damaged. The vehicle is in the middle of a street, with the surrounding area littered by debris. Russian law enforcement officials could be seen searching the scene.

The Zaporozhye nuclear power plant also confirmed its staff member’s death and informed the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) about the incident, the plant’s communications director, Evgenia Yashina, told TASS. The station’s director, Yury Chernichuk, blasted the incident as a “horrifying, inhumane terrorist act” and demanded those behind it be brought to justice.

“Attacking the staff members responsible for the security of a nuclear facility is a reckless step beyond any bounds,” Chernichuk stated. The UN nuclear energy watchdog has not yet commented on the incident.

The Russian Investigative Committee said it had opened a criminal case for murder. It did not name any suspects. The Ukrainian military intelligence (HUR) hailed the incident in a Telegram post, branding Korotky a “war criminal” and a “collaborationist” for his decision to “voluntarily” cooperate with Russia. It also accused him of organizing “events in support of the Russian… army,” and of joining the United Russia party.

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HUR stopped short of openly claiming responsibility for the incident but published a video showing the moment of the explosion and vowing “vengeance” on anyone it deems a “war criminal.” 

The Zaporozhye nuclear plant has been under Russian control since March 2022. Throughout the conflict, Moscow and Kiev have repeatedly accused each other of shelling the facility, and the Russian Defense Ministry has said that several attempts by Ukrainian assault units to retake it have been repelled.

Zaporozhye Region officially joined Russia, together with three other former Ukrainian territories, in the fall of 2022. The IAEA has a permanent monitoring mission at the nuclear facility.

In late August, senior Russian diplomat Rodion Miroshnik said staff members at the plant had been facing blackmail. People working at the facility had allegedly been coerced into cooperating with Kiev and passing sensitive data or even committing terrorist acts under the threat of their relatives in Ukraine being killed.