Police are investigating a theory that Moscow’s intelligence service and the Russian mafia played a role in the assassination of a helicopter pilot who defected to Ukraine and was found shot dead in Spain.

Captain Maksim Kuzminov, a known target of Russian death squads, was killed in an underground garage in Villajoyosa, near Benidorm, on February 13. He was shot six times before his attacker ran him over with his own car.

Kuzminov, 28, fled Russia last August with the help of Ukrainian intelligence services and, following his daring escape, accused Russian President Vladimir Putin of ‘genocide’.

His killing is feared to have been a move to settle scores between Russia and Ukraine, which managed to capture a working helicopter when Kuzminov defected.

Spanish detectives are now working to determine if whether Russian mafia based in Spain were involved in his murder or acting as intermediaries for Moscow, ABC España reported.

Police are investigating a theory that Moscow ‘s intelligence service and the Russian mafia played a role in the assassination of helicopter pilot Maksim Kuzminov (pictured)

Kuzminov, 28, a known target of Russian death squads, was killed in an underground garage in Villajoyosa on February 13. Spanish Civil Guard officers are pictured at the scene

Kuzminov was shot six times before his attacker ran him over with his own car. Pictured is the burned car allegedly used in his killing

Captain Maksim Kuzminov, 28, (pictured) fled Russia with the help of Ukrainian intelligence services

Pictured: Ukraine intelligence officers inspect a Russian helicopter which they say was handed over to Ukraine by Russian pilot Maxim Kuzminov

Ukrainian GUR military intelligence confirmed on Monday that Kuzminov had died in Spain. They gave no further details about the circumstances surrounding his death, though Spanish and Ukrainian media reported that he had been living in the country under a fake name.

Spanish detectives have now launched a probe into his death, reportedly focusing on how the murderers were able to find him. 

‘The initial suspicion was an organised crime incident in an area with a large Russian and Ukrainian community,’ a Spanish police official told VICE News, adding that ‘the mafias of the world are well represented in southern Spain’.

There have reportedly been several operations against the Russian mafia in the area where Kuzminov. It is understood that police are looking for a link between the crime organisation and his murder. 

One working hypothesis is that his killers located him through someone he trusted, according to ABC España. There has been suggestion that a visit from his girlfriend could have been key to the murderers locating him.

Some sources also suspect his killers may have been carrying out a job that was commissioned by a larger authority, such as Russia’s spy services.

Kuzminov had been publicly sentenced to death by military counterintelligence in Russia, which today branded him a ‘traitor and criminal’. 

In the Kremlin’s first response to Kuzminov’s killing, Sergei Naryshkin, the director of Russia’s Foreign Intelligence Service (SVR), said: ‘In Russia it is customary to speak either good of the dead or nothing at all.’

But he quickly added: ‘This traitor and criminal became a moral corpse at the very moment when he planned his dirty and terrible crime.’ 

Spanish Civil Guard officers investigate the garage where the body of Russian pilot Maxim Kuzminov was found after he was shot dead, in Villajoyosa, Spain on February 13, 2024

Ukrainian GUR military intelligence confirmed yesterday that the body of the pilot – a known target of Russian death squads – was found in Spain. Spanish Civil Guard officers are pictured at the scene of his murder on February 13, 2024

Spanish Civil Guard officers stand outside the garage where the body of the Russian pilot Maxim Kuzminov was found after he was shot dead

Spanish detectives have now launched a probe into his death, reportedly focusing on how the murderers were able to find him. Pictured: Spanish Civil Guard officers at the garage where Kuzminov’s body was found

Sergei Naryshkin, the director of Russia’s Foreign Intelligence Service (SVR), said: ‘This traitor and criminal became a moral corpse at the very moment when he planned his dirty and terrible crime’

Western leaders say Russia frequently assassinates those it deems traitors abroad. 

Moscow says the West has not provided evidence to support such assertions.

A Spanish court in Villajoyosa has opened a probe into the death of the shooting victim, a judicial source told Reuters on Tuesday. 

At the time of his death, the victim carried documentation identifying him as a 33-year-old Ukrainian national, but his identity was still under investigation, the source said.

Kuzminov’s defection to Ukraine was presented last year as a major coup for Kyiv. At a news conference in Kyiv he said he could not understand why his ‘beloved motherland’ would enter into a war with Ukraine.

Other members of the air crew died during his defection. Moscow said Kuzminov killed them; he said they panicked and fled, and may have been killed subsequently.

In October, soon after his dramatic defection, there were public death threats against Kuzminov in Russia, with suggestions that Putin’s secret services would find and kill him for an ultimate betrayal. 

Kuzminov’s defection to Ukraine was presented last year as a major coup for Kyiv

A burned car allegedly used by the perpetrators of the murder of Russian pilot Maxim Kuzminov to escape the scene is parked outside the Spanish Civil Guard barracks, in El Campello, Spain

A view shows a garage where a Russian pilot Maxim Kuzminov, who defected to Ukraine last year, was found shot dead in La Villajoyosa

Spanish Civil Guard officers investigate the garage where the body of Russian pilot Maxim Kuzminov was found after he was shot dead, in Villajoyosa, Spain on February 13, 2024

A Spanish court in Villajoyosa has opened a probe into the death of Maksim Kuzminov, pictured, a judicial source told Reuters on Tuesday

Anonymous Spetsnaz special forces officers from Russia’s GRU were last year shown on Moscow state TV making clear an ‘order’ had been given to liquidate Kuzminov. 

State-run Rossiya 1 channel’s Vesti Nedeli channel told viewers in a chilling broadcast: ‘The order [to kill Captain Kuzminov] was received, its execution is a matter of time.’

One Spetsnaz officer said: ‘We’ll find the man and punish him for betraying his brothers to the fullest extent of our country’s law.’

A second officer said: ‘He will not live…’

Kuzminov’s wife and family were believed to have been taken out of Russia before he defected. It was not known why he was in Spain.

After defecting, Kuzminov became a propaganda trophy for Ukraine. 

He stated there were no Nazis in Ukraine – a regular Putin assertion – and accused the dictator of ‘genocide’ of both Ukrainians and Russians by conducting the war.

In a documentary on his audacious flight and surrender, he said: ‘I realised I was near the border.

‘So I gave my location, said let’s give it a shot… I had made my final decision… I flew at extremely low altitude in radio silent mode.…’

Anonymous Spetsnaz special forces officers from Russia’s GRU were last year shown on Moscow state TV making clear an ‘order’ had been given to liquidate Kuzminov

Kuzminov’s wife and family were believed to have been taken out of Russia before he defected. It was not known why he was in Spain

After defecting, Kuzminov became a propaganda trophy for Ukraine

He said: ‘[I defected because] I am very offended by what is happening now.

‘Murder, tears, blood. Just people killing each other… 

‘What is happening now is just genocide of the Ukrainian people, both Ukrainian and Russian.

‘The basis of my action is not to contribute to these crimes.’

In an interview broadcast by Ukraine’s authorities, Kuzimov said: ‘I contacted representatives of Ukrainian intelligence, explained my situation, to which they offered this option “Come on, we guarantee your safety, guarantee new documents, guarantee monetary compensation, a reward”.’

He was reportedly promised £400,000 to defect to Ukraine with Russian military equipment.