Traces of the suicide bomber’s DNA have been found on the bag containing a second bomb. The first victims have been named.
Moscow (AsiaNews/Agencies) – Russian investigators have identified the likely culprit in Monday’s St Petersburg metro attack, which killed and wounded scores of people. Akbarzhon Jalilov was born in the Kyrgyz city of Osh in 1995, but was a naturalised Russian citizen.
Traces of his DNA were found on a bag containing a second bomb, left in the station and later defused. CCTV camera footage appears to confirm that one man was involved with both bombs.
This morning, investigators searched Jalilov’s home and examined other video footage showing him leaving the house with a bag and a backpack.
Jalilov’s remains were found at the blast site, but it was unclear whether he was one of the victims. The official list of dead and wounded included a man from Kazakhstan, who was wrongly named as a suspect. Maksim Aryshev, 20, was a student at the State University of St. Petersburg.
The youngest victim, Ksenia Malyukova, was 18. The dead include Irina Medyantseva, who died trying to shield her daughter.
The number of victims rose from 11 to 14 as three more people died of their injuries. Russian Health Minister Veronika Skvortsova said 49 people are still hospitalised.
No one has claimed responsibility for the attack, but the Islamic State (IS) group had called for attacks against Russia over its military intervention in Syria against Jihadis.
Russia has also been battling Islamists in the Caucasus for a number of years. Several bloody attacks have occurred in the region.
At least 7,000 young Chechens and Central Asians have gone to fight in Syria with IS (Daesh). Many have returned home.