Russian Satirist Killed in Suspected Assassination in Eastern Poland

A Russian cartoonist known for mocking Vladimir Putin was shot dead under mysterious circumstances in Biała Podlaska, eastern Poland, authorities said Tuesday. The victim was Robert Kozubkov, 44, better known by his pen name, Semyon Skrepetsky. Lubin prosecutor’s office spokesman Marcin Kozak said five bullets were fired at him, apparently at close range in a parking lot near a residential building, and one struck his head. Paramedics tried to save him, but he died at the scene.

Polish police said two Belarusian citizens were detained for questioning, but no charges have been filed. Authorities released security camera footage of one suspect running away and asked the public for help. Police also said the attackers may have changed clothes after fleeing. Some reports said investigators found a Belarusian taxi driver who may have taken the assailants to the scene, though he appears to have been forced at gunpoint and was not a willing participant.

Skrepetsky had lived in Poland since 2021. According to the Moscow-linked outlet Meduza, three days before his killing, on June 12, he traveled alone to Berlin for a protest outside the Russian embassy. There he took a Russian flag from the back of his pants, threw it in a trash bin, and held up an image of Joseph Stalin cradling Putin as a child. After returning to Poland, he was killed.

Meduza and other opposition-linked outlets said Skrepetsky regularly drew satirical portraits of Putin, Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko, Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov and the late Russian opposition figure Alexei Navalny. He also criticized Kyiv and was listed in a Ukrainian database of people accused of crimes against Ukraine’s national security. Polish authorities have not said publicly who they believe ordered or carried out the killing, but Poland has long said its support for Ukraine and role as a logistics hub for military aid has made it a target for Russian spies and sabotage. Opposition-aligned outlets also reported that Skrepetsky had received threats from self-described “Russian patriots,” including threats to rape him.