Suspect detained in Poland in killing of Russian satirist Semyon Skrepetsky

Source: Donald Tusk

Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk said a suspect has been detained in Poland in connection with the killing of Russian artist Semyon Skrepetsky.

The suspect has not been named. He was traveling on a Georgian passport, Tusk said. Whether he holds citizenship in any other country is not known.

Lublin police said the suspect was using a passport issued in the name of a 36-year-old Georgian citizen. He was detained on the morning of June 18 near Warsaw. The police statement included a photo of the man being taken into custody in an apartment, though his face is obscured.

According to an Onet source, the detained suspect was using false documents and is believed to be from Chechnya.

Intelligence services are working to identify who ordered the killing, Tusk added.

Russian satirist Semyon Skrepetsky was killed on June 15 in the city of Biała Podlaska. Two Belarusian citizens were initially detained in connection with the killing, including a taxi driver who had driven the suspected assailants from Warsaw. They were later released after investigators determined they had no involvement in the crime.

Skrepetsky was known for his caricatures, including of Vladimir Putin and Ramzan Kadyrov. He moved to Poland in 2021, fearing persecution. On June 12 — three days before his death — he staged a protest outside Russia’s embassy in Berlin, bringing a painting depicting Putin in Stalin’s arms. After the protest, Skrepetsky received threats, which he wrote about on his Telegram channel on the day he was killed.

At Meduza, we are committed to transparency about our use of artificial intelligence in the newsroom. The story you’re reading was written by one of our living, breathing journalists and translated from Russian using an AI model configured to follow our strict editorial standards. This translation process is the result of extensive testing and refinements to ensure our English-language coverage is timely and accurate. A Meduza editor reviews every draft before publication.

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Suspect detained in Poland in killing of Russian satirist Semyon Skrepetsky

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Suspect detained in Poland in killing of Russian satirist Semyon Skrepetsky

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