Investigators say student who opened fire at Transcarpathian school was recruited by Russian intelligence services

A 15-year-old shooter from the city of Chop in Transcarpathia was recruited by Russian intelligence services during an online game. On April 16, he wounded a classmate at school with a starter pistol converted into a firearm.

This was reported by the head of the Transcarpathian Regional Military Administration Myroslav Biletsky and the police of the Transcarpathian region.

Police are currently investigating the incident as a terrorist act.

Law enforcement officers also reported that a schoolboy who tried to bring a knife to class and harm his classmates in the Transcarpathian village of Bushtyno in early September 2025 was also recruited by Russian special services during an online game. Police claim that he wanted to broadcast live, but was detained.

• On March 23, a terrorist attack occurred in Bucha. The police received a report of an explosion, and when they arrived, another one occurred. The suspect — a 21-year-old local resident Bohdan Tymchenko — said that he met an alleged representative of the Russian special services, on whose orders he committed the terrorist attack, in an online game.
• According to him, the curator blackmailed him and threatened the life of his mother, a soldier who is currently in a combat zone. Because of this, the man was afraid to report his actions to Ukrainian law enforcement officers.
• In recent months, similar terrorist attacks or attempts have been recorded in Lviv, Kyiv, Dnipro, Mykolaiv, Odesa and Brovary. In particular, in Lviv, a double explosion killed a policewoman and a National Guardsman, and 25 more people were injured. In Bucha, an explosion that occurred on March 23 injured two law enforcement officers.

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