On Friday, February 6, 2026, in the northwestern part of Moscow, the First Deputy Head of the GRU Main Intelligence Directorate of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation, Gen. Vladimir Alekseyev, was shot multiple times by an assailant. The incident was reported by the Investigative Committee of the Russian Federation.
Photo: Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation
As reported by the official spokesperson of the Investigative Committee of the Russian Federation, Svetlana Petrenko, a criminal case has been opened under Part 3 of Article 30 and Part 1 of Article 105 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation (attempted murder), as well as Part 1 of Article 222 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation (illegal trafficking in firearms), in connection with the attempted assassination of Lieutenant General of the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation Vladimir Alekseyev in northwestern Moscow.
According to the investigation, on February 6, 2026, in a residential building on Volokolamskoye Highway in Moscow, an as-yet-unidentified individual fired several shots at a man and fled the scene. The victim was hospitalized at one of the city’s hospitals.
Investigators and forensic specialists from the Moscow branch of the Investigative Committee are currently working at the scene, reviewing CCTV footage and questioning eyewitnesses. Investigative measures and operational searches are underway to identify the person or persons involved in committing the crime.
According to reports from Russian media, the attacker fired several shots at the victim’s back and chest (unofficially three shots), after which the victim was resuscitated by emergency responders. His current condition remains unknown and is reported to be serious or critical.
Who Is the Victim?
Vladimir Stepanovich Alekseyev (born April 24, 1961, in the village of Kholodky, Ukrainian SSR) has served as Deputy Head of the GRU Main Intelligence Directorate since 2011 (the head of the GRU since 2018 has been Adm. Igor Kostyukov). Alekseyev, an ethnic Ukrainian, was awarded the title Hero of the Russian Federation for his involvement in the military intervention during the Syrian civil war, cited for courage and heroism displayed in the performance of military duties.
He began his military service in 1984, joining a special-purpose GRU Spetsnaz unit. He later rose to become head of the intelligence directorate at the headquarters of the Moscow Military District, and subsequently held the same post in the Far Eastern Military District. He was later transferred to the GRU’s central headquarters, where he led the 14th Directorate responsible for Spetsnaz forces.
Alekseyev is known to have intelligence links with paramilitary groups worldwide and is also alleged to have been involved in interference in the United States presidential elections in 2016 and 2020. He is also reported to have been responsible for organizing the Novichok poisoning in the United Kingdom of defected intelligence officer Sergei Skripal and his daughter Yulia Skripal on March 4, 2018.
In June 2023, Alekseyev made a public appearance during the crisis surrounding the mutiny of the Wagner Group, calling for de-escalation and taking part in talks with its leader Yevgeny Prigozhin, who later died under unclear circumstances.