Two Polish citizens have been apprehended in Poland on suspicion of assaulting Russian activist Leonid Volkov, an ally of the deceased opposition leader Alexei Navalny, in Lithuania, officials announced on Friday.
Volkov was assaulted on March 12 outside his residence in Vilnius, the Lithuanian capital, where he resides in exile. The assailant reportedly shattered one of Volkov’s car windows, sprayed tear gas into his eyes, and struck him with a hammer, according to police statements at the time.
Lithuanian President Gitanas Nausėda disclosed the arrests to journalists in Vilnius and expressed gratitude to Poland for their cooperation.
“Two individuals have been detained in Poland on suspicion of assaulting Russian opposition figure Leonid Volkov. I commend the Republic of Poland for the outstanding work they have done. I have had discussions with the Polish president and extended my gratitude for their exceptional collaboration,” Nausėda stated.
Both suspects are Polish nationals with prior records known to the authorities in their home country. They traveled to Vilnius before the attack on Volkov and returned to Warsaw afterward, as per Lithuania’s deputy police chief, Saulius Briginas.
Briginas mentioned that they were apprehended on April 3 in a joint operation involving Lithuanian law enforcement.
Lithuania anticipates their extradition in May, stated chief prosecutor Justas Laucius. If convicted on charges of inflicting bodily harm, they could face a maximum sentence of three years in prison.
In Poland, the Central Investigation Bureau of Police confirmed that its officers collaborated with Lithuanian authorities to detain two individuals suspected of an assault on a Russian opposition activist in Lithuania in March, without disclosing Volkov’s name.
Norbert Woliński, spokesperson for the Warsaw-Praga district prosecutor’s office, verified to The Associated Press that two individuals were detained in Poland based on a European arrest warrant initiated by Lithuania, and the case is currently under review by a court. Woliński declined to provide further details.
These developments unfolded a day after Poland revealed the arrest of an individual suspected of preparing to spy for Russia’s military intelligence, purportedly in a plot to assassinate Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
Volkov, in a statement on social media platform X (formerly Twitter), expressed his lack of knowledge regarding the arrest’s specifics but acknowledged the diligent efforts of the Lithuanian police over the past month. He expressed satisfaction that their efforts had yielded results and anticipated learning more details soon.
Following the vicious attack, Volkov sustained a broken arm and was hospitalized. He squarely blamed Russian President Vladimir Putin’s “henchmen” for the assault and pledged to persist in his opposition endeavors.
The assault occurred nearly a month after Navalny’s mysterious demise in a remote Arctic penal colony. Navalny, Russia’s prominent opposition figure and Putin’s staunch critic, had been imprisoned since January 2021 and was serving a 19-year term on politically motivated extremism charges.
Navalny’s funeral in Moscow on March 1 drew thousands of supporters, signaling a rare display of defiance in Putin’s Russia amidst an ongoing and severe crackdown on dissent. Navalny’s widow, Yulia, vowed to carry on his legacy.
Volkov previously oversaw Navalny’s regional offices and election campaigns. He contested for Moscow mayor in 2013 and sought to challenge Putin in the 2018 presidential election. Volkov departed Russia several years ago under pressure from the authorities.
