War correspondent Vladlen Tatarsky has been killed in a blast that rocked Street Bar, a St. Petersburg cafe, RIA Novosti was told by source. The information was confirmed by TASS.
The Russian Interior Ministry soon confirmed that Tatarsky had been killed. “One person died in the incident, it was war correspondent Vladlen Tatarsky,” the statement reads.
The power of the explosive device in St. Petersburg was more than 200 grams of TNT, TASS was told by law enforcement agencies. It was hidden in a statue that was gifted to Tatarsky, the news agency was told. According to RIA Novosti, the explosive device is believed to have been brought by a woman.
The Russian Investigative Committee launched a criminal case.
Street Bar after the explosion. Photo by Igor Selivanov, exclusively for Novaya Gazeta Europe
According to St. Petersburg Governor Alexander Beglov, the number of people injured in the explosion has risen to 25, 19 of them have been rushed to the hospital.
According to Fontanka, earlier the cafe was owned by Yevgeny Prigozhin. Cyber Z Front, a discussion club, gathers at the place every weekend. Media reports suggest that Vladlen Tatarsky, the war correspondent, had an event in his honour organised at the place.
