JUNE 17, 2026
Polish prime minister says killing of Russian dissident artist has hallmarks of political assassination
Robert Kuzovkov, a Russian artist known by the pseudonym Semyon Skrepetsky who was critical of President Vladimir Putin, was shot and killed near his home in Biala Podlaska, eastern Poland, on Monday. Polish prosecutors said an unidentified man approached him around 9:45 a.m. and fired five shots at close range; Kuzovkov died at the scene from gunshot wounds to the head, chest, and back. Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk said Wednesday that the killing has the hallmarks of a political assassination.
Robert Kuzovkov, who painted unflattering portraits of Putin, Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov, and other senior Russian officials, was shot and killed near his home in the eastern Polish city of Biala Podlaska on Monday, prosecutors said Tuesday. One of his works depicted Putin being cradled in the arms of Soviet dictator Josef Stalin. On Sunday — one day before his death — he posted a video on YouTube showing himself in Berlin placing a Russian flag in a trash can on June 12, the holiday marking Russia's sovereignty.
Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk addressed the killing at a news briefing in Warsaw on Wednesday. "Everything points to this being a political murder," Tusk said. "But we must wait for evidence or more concrete indications. Because if that was the case — if it was ordered by Russia — then it is an extremely serious matter internationally. It would constitute state terrorism."
Polish investigators initially detained two Belarusian citizens in connection with the killing, but Tusk said Tuesday they had been released because authorities had no evidence that they were directly involved. Tusk described the investigation as difficult. "If there's a hired killer involved, it's unfortunately not easy to identify such a person," he said, adding that Skrepetsky had previously been offered protection by Polish authorities but had refused it.