Russia’s Federal Security Service (FSB) said it has detained three more suspects in the ongoing criminal investigation into last month’s deadly concert hall attack outside Moscow, state media reported Thursday, citing the law enforcement agency’s press service.
“In Moscow, Yekaterinburg and Omsk a citizen of Russia and two foreign citizens, both from the region of Central Asia, were detained in connection to the terrorist attack committed on March 22,” the FSB was quoted as saying by the state-run TASS news agency.
Camouflaged gunmen killed at least 145 people and wounded hundreds more at the Crocus City Hall music venue late last month, the deadliest attack in Russia since the 2004 Beslan school siege. Russian authorities detained 11 people, including four suspected gunmen, shortly after the mass killing.
"During operational search activities, it was established that two of the detainees transferred money for the purchase of firearms and vehicles used in the terrorist attack,” the FSB said on Thursday without specifying whether the two individuals mentioned were foreign citizens.
It added that the third detainee was suspected of recruiting and financing the gunmen behind the Crocus City Hall attack.
While the FSB said three people had been detained, a video released by the law enforcement agency appeared to show the detentions of four separate individuals, with one of them being escorted from a helicopter. However, it was not immediately possible to verify the identities of those seen being detained in the video since their faces were covered.
Top Russian officials, including President Vladimir Putin, have accused both Ukraine and the West of being partly responsible for last month’s attack, but they have yet to bring forward any concrete evidence to back up the claim.
Meanwhile, the Islamic State affiliate ISIS-K has said it was behind the attack, and social media channels linked to the militant group published graphic videos of the gunmen killing people at Crocus City Hall.
Kyiv and the West have denied any involvement and accused Russian officials of “exploiting” the tragedy.
