A car carrying a Russian army colonel exploded in St Petersburg on the morning of November 12. The serviceman was killed. The explosion occurred at about 7 a.m. at 32 Kolpinskoye Highway, near the intersection with Polotskaya Street in Slavyanka, within the Shushary settlement.
Fontanka reported that the colonel had driven about 300 metres before the explosion. The car was initially believed to contain another person, but it later emerged that the serviceman was alone in the vehicle.
City bus damaged in blast
The explosion damaged a city bus passing by, shattering its windows. There were 30–40 passengers on board, none of whom was injured. The section of Kolpinskoye Highway was closed, and several bus routes were temporarily changed.
This is the second similar incident in Slavyanka in recent months. At the end of August, a lieutenant colonel was killed when a car exploded half a kilometre from this location, near 18 Kolpinskoye Highway; his wife, who was nearby, survived. The explosive device was remotely detonated. At the time of publication, officials had not disclosed the identity of the deceased.
Update: who the victim may have been
Several media outlets, including Verstka, reported that the dead colonel may have been the chief navigator of the 6th Air Force and Air Defence Army, which is based in the Leningrad Region. His name and position have still not been officially disclosed, and investigators have not announced the motive or perpetrators behind the explosion.
Photo: Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0, CC BY-SA 3.0; archive)
