Support The Moscow Times!

Moscow Businessman's Son Freed After Deadly Gunfight

Police have rescued the 20-year-old kidnapped son of a Moscow businessman after a gunfight that left one of the suspected abductors dead.

Police did not identify the son or his father, whom they described as the owner of a restaurant and a transportation company.

The son was whisked off in an SUV after being attacked late at night on April 18 near an apartment building on Novokosinskaya Ulitsa in eastern Moscow, police official Sergei Stukalov said Monday.

"The kidnappers later contacted the father of the victim and demanded $700,000 for the release of his son," Stukalov said in comments carried by Interfax.

He said the police determined the location of the son on April 25 and immediately dispatched special forces to conduct a rescue operation. Four kidnappers put up armed resistance, and one of them was shot in the abdomen and later died of his injuries, he said.

Stukalov did not provide further details of the rescue or elaborate on the well-being of the son.

He said the remaining three suspects have been charged with kidnapping. If convicted, each faces up to eight years in prison.

… we have a small favor to ask.

As you may have heard, The Moscow Times, an independent news source for over 30 years, has been unjustly branded as a "foreign agent" by the Russian government. This blatant attempt to silence our voice is a direct assault on the integrity of journalism and the values we hold dear.

We, the journalists of The Moscow Times, refuse to be silenced. Our commitment to providing accurate and unbiased reporting on Russia remains unshaken. But we need your help to continue our critical mission.

Your support, no matter how small, makes a world of difference. If you can, please support us monthly starting from just 2. It's quick to set up, and you can be confident that you're making a significant impact every month by supporting open, independent journalism. Thank you.

Continue

Read more