(Vilnius) The attack suffered on Tuesday in Vilnius by Leonid Volkov, the former right-hand man of the Russian opponent who died in prison Alexeï Navalny, was probably “organized by Russia”, the intelligence services estimated on Wednesday. Lithuanians.
“It is likely that the attack” against Mr. Volkov, who lives in exile in the Lithuanian capital, “is an operation organized and implemented by Russia,” according to an official statement.
Attacked with a hammer in front of his home, Mr. Volkov, aged 43, had to be briefly hospitalized.
Lithuanian President Gitanas Nauseda, for his part, explained to the Lithuanian press in Paris that the competent services would “investigate and, I hope, find the culprits. As for Putin, I can only say one thing: no one is afraid of you here.”
Mr. Nauseda, who met his French counterpart Emmanuel Macron the day before, participated in a strategic forum in the French capital on Wednesday.
Hit fifteen times
The Lithuanian police, for their part, confirmed that they had opened an investigation into the attack on Mr. Volkov, described as “shocking” by the government.
Deputy police chief Saulius Tamulevicius said investigators were looking into different leads, without giving further details.
“We are taking all necessary measures to elucidate the motive and causes of this crime. Several avenues are being studied,” he told LRT radio.
No suspect has yet been identified.
This attack comes almost a month after the death of Mr. Navalny, on February 16 at the age of 47, in a penal colony in the Arctic where he was serving a 19-year prison sentence for “extremism”.
Leonid Volkov, a leading Russian opposition figure, blamed President Vladimir Putin for his death.
His attack also occurred a few days before the presidential election which should extend the mandate of the head of the Kremlin.
Mr. Volkov claimed on Telegram that he was hit in the leg 15 times during the attack on Tuesday evening.
“Someone broke a car window and sprayed tear gas in his eyes” before inflicting blows on him with a hammer, Kira Iarmich, the former spokesperson for Mr. Navalny.
Mr Volkov’s wife, Anna Biryukova, posted photos on social media showing her husband’s injuries, including a black eye, a red mark on his forehead and blood on his leg.
A government source told AFP that Mr. Volkov was released early Wednesday from the hospital where “bruises were noted on various parts of his body as well as a fracture of a bone in his hand.”
“More serious injuries were avoided,” said this source.