Moscow court frees four truck drivers unwittingly used by Ukraine in 2025 ‘Operation Spiderweb’ drone attack on Russian military airfields
Source: Kommersant
The Moscow City Court released four drivers whose trucks Ukrainian security services used to launch drones at Russian military airfields during Operation Spiderweb, Kommersant reported.
At a hearing on September 16, the court denied an Investigative Committee representative’s request to extend the detention of Andrey Merkuryev, Alexander Zaitsev, Mikhail Ryumin, and Sergey Kanurin. The four have been charged with carrying out a terrorist attack and transporting explosives as part of an organized group.
Investigators allege that the drivers belonged to a group established by Ukrainian-born Artem and Ekaterina Timofeyev, who were recruited by the Security Service of Ukraine to carry out terrorist attacks in Russia and have been placed on a wanted list. Some of the drivers worked for a business registered as a sole proprietorship in Artem Timofeyev’s name. The Investigative Committee alleges that he approached the others as an ordinary customer seeking transportation services.
The Investigative Committee completed its investigation and sent the case to the Prosecutor General’s Office, but First Deputy Prosecutor General Anatoly Razinkin declined to approve the indictment. According to Razinkin, investigators had found no direct evidence of the defendants’ guilt, and the circumstantial evidence was insufficient to bring the case to court. Investigators disagreed and appealed the decision. The Moscow City Court then denied the Investigative Committee’s request to extend the defendants’ detention and ordered their release.
On June 1, 2025, the Security Service of Ukraine carried out Operation Spiderweb, using drones to attack military airfields in four Russian regions. The drones were hidden inside wood-frame houses transported by five long-haul truck drivers. One driver, 62-year-old Vasily Pytikov, was killed in an explosion during the operation. It later emerged that authorities had arrested the other four truckers — Merkuryev, Zaitsev, Ryumin, and Kanurin. Ukrainian officials said the drivers were unaware of the drones hidden in their trucks.
The defendants deny any wrongdoing. They said they called law enforcement themselves after the drones flew out of their trucks and also tried to bring the drones down.
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