A powerful explosion in the lobby of a luxury apartment complex in Moscow has killed Armen Sarkisyan, a pro-Russia paramilitary leader from eastern Ukraine, along with his bodyguard. 

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The blast occurred on Monday ( Feb 3) at the Scarlet Sails residential complex, situated along the Moscow River. 

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Russia’s Tass news agency reported that the explosion took place as Sarkisyan, head of the boxing federation in Russian-occupied Donetsk and founder of the “Arbat” battalion, entered the building with his security personnel. The bomb detonated instantly, killing his bodyguard on the spot. Sarkisyan was critically injured and later died in the hospital.

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Russia’s security agencies have described the incident as a targeted assassination, though no group has claimed responsibility. 

Sarkisyan had a controversial past, with a history of supporting pro-Russia forces in Ukraine. Kyiv had issued an international arrest warrant for him in 2014, accusing him of involvement in violent crackdowns on pro-EU protesters during the Maidan uprising. He later founded the Arbat paramilitary battalion, which has been active in eastern Ukraine and Russia’s Kursk region since the full-scale Russian invasion in 2022.

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Footage from the lobby of the apartment complex showed a heavily damaged entrance with shattered glass and a blown-out door.

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Sergei Markov, a pro-Kremlin analyst, wrote on the Telegram messaging app, "Ukraine carried out a terrorist attack in the super-elite complex Alye Parusa [Scarlet Sails]. This is how Ukraine’s terrorist attacks are getting closer to the Russian elite.”

(With inputs from agencies)