The Justice Department on Wednesday unsealed charges accusing a Russian intelligence services network of plotting attacks and contract killings around the world, including inside the United States. Prosecutors allege members of the network paid or attempted to pay people in the U.S. and abroad to conduct pre-operational surveillance and carry out targeted murders, and directed associates to attempt acts of terrorism against civilian and military infrastructure in European countries aligned, or seen as aligned, with Ukraine. The defendants remain at large.
Attorney General Todd Blanche said it is the department’s duty to prevent adversaries from bringing violence to American soil, crediting the FBI and federal prosecutors for the case. FBI Director Kash Patel said the charges describe a plot to kill a dissident in the United States for speaking out against the Russian government, and warned of the broader threat posed by transnational repression.
Senior Justice Department and FBI officials said the operation reflects a violation of U.S. sovereignty and vowed sustained efforts to disrupt any foreign intelligence activity that seeks to direct violence in the country.
Details of the Russian intelligence services network
According to the unsealed indictment, the network has, since at least 2024, conspired to carry out attacks and killings globally, with a recent emphasis on Russian dissidents, defectors, and countries perceived as backing Ukraine. Prosecutors say members have tried to recruit multiple people within the United States to perform surveillance and commit murder.
Three defendants are described as senior figures in the operation: Yuri Khrameev, also known as “Colonel Yuri,” 63, of Russia, a former intelligence service colonel who allegedly recruited individuals to kill perceived dissidents; his son, Kirill Khrameev, 27, an officer in the Federal Security Service of Russia (FSB); and Oemis Romagoza Durruthy, 35, a Cuban national based in Russia who allegedly coordinated attacks for the network.
Two others charged are Yaidel Delgado Suarez, also known as “Viking,” 35, of Cuba, described as a prolific recruiter including within the United States, and Angel Eduardo Castro, 22, of Venezuela, who allegedly worked with Suarez to recruit U.S.-based individuals to surveil and attempt to kill a prominent Russian dissident in the United States identified in the indictment as Victim-1.
Alleged U.S. plot to target a dissident
Prosecutors say that this summer the network recruited a U.S.-based individual, identified as U.S. Resident-1, to surveil and kill Victim-1. Suarez allegedly sent two locations linked to Victim-1, provided detailed surveillance instructions, and promised U.S. Resident-1 between 1,000 and 1,500 dollars for the initial work.
After receiving photographs and videos of locations associated with Victim-1, Suarez and Castro allegedly offered U.S. Resident-1 40,000 dollars to “eliminate” or “disappear” the target. When U.S. Resident-1 declined to carry out the killing personally, they asked whether he knew “someone [who] can do the work,” and Suarez said he had “people in Mexico” who could otherwise execute the murder, though they were delayed.
Suarez also allegedly approached other individuals in the United States with offers of substantial payments to surveil and kill Victim-1 and other potential targets.
Earlier solicitation tied to Lithuania
The indictment also describes a 2023 effort in which Kirill Khrameev allegedly solicited a U.S. citizen, identified as U.S. Citizen-1, to travel to an address in Lithuania to photograph another target, Victim-2, described by the network as a “bad guy” who was “telling lies about Russia.” After U.S. Citizen-1 completed the photography assignment for a promised 200 dollars, Yuri Khrameev allegedly offered approximately 25,000 dollars to kill Victim-2, saying the target was “spreading dirt about my country” and “distorting history.”
He allegedly suggested methods such as “throwing a bottle of gasoline” or “sticking a knife.” When U.S. Citizen-1 refused, Yuri Khrameev purportedly offered a “simpler job,” including setting fire to a warehouse or throwing a gasoline bottle at an electrical substation, explaining the aim was to target “all the countries that are helping Ukraine,” and identifying himself as a “colonel of Russian intelligence agencies.”
Overseas coordination and alleged attacks
The government alleges that Oemis Romagoza Durruthy coordinated travel and logistics for operations abroad. In June 2024, Durruthy allegedly helped plan an attack in Prague, Czechia, by sending a participant potential target sites and facilitating travel.
In September 2024, he allegedly coordinated another attack in Lithuania, booking travel for a participant and maintaining frequent contact. Prosecutors also say that in November 2025 Durruthy communicated with Yuri Khrameev and obtained media of one of Victim-1’s residences, which U.S. Resident-1 later surveilled.
Charges and investigation
All five defendants, identified as Yuri Khrameev, Kirill Khrameev, Oemis Romagoza Durruthy, Yaidel Delgado Suarez, and Angel Eduardo Castro, are charged with conspiracy to finance terrorism, which carries a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison. Yuri Khrameev, Suarez, and Castro also face a conspiracy to commit murder for hire charge, which carries a maximum penalty of 10 years.
The case was investigated by the Counterintelligence Division of the FBI’s New York Field Office, with significant assistance from the Washington Field Office and Homeland Security Investigations. Prosecutors from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York, alongside attorneys from the Justice Department’s National Security Division, are handling the case.
An indictment is an allegation, and all defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty in court.