DOJ Charges Five Alleged Russian Agents In U.S. Dissident Murder Plot
The Justice Department charged five alleged Russian intelligence agents in a plot to murder a prominent Russian dissident living in the United States, according to an unsealed Manhattan indictment.[1]
Prosecutors say Venezuelan defendant Angel Eduardo Castro and Cuban defendant Yaidel Delgado Suarez used encrypted messages to direct a Venezuelan U.S. resident in Brooklyn to surveil two addresses tied to the dissident.[2] Suarez allegedly told the recruit the person at those addresses was someone they "want to eliminate they want to disappear" and offered $40,000 "for whoever does the work." NPR When the recruit refused, Suarez allegedly asked if he knew "someone who wants to do construction," which prosecutors said was coded language.[2] Prosecutors say Suarez also told the recruit he faced pressure from his boss and had a team in Mexico that could carry out the operation.[2] All five defendants are alleged members of a broader "RIS Network" that has carried out hybrid operations since at least 2024 and remains at large, the filings say.[2]
The indictment calls the network "one arm of the Russian Federation's apparatus used to carry out external attacks, including murder, around the world." NPR It also says the group operated against civilian and military targets in European allies of Ukraine.[2]
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📌 Key Facts
- The story is based on an unsealed Manhattan indictment that describes the network as "one arm of the Russian Federation's apparatus used to carry out external attacks, including murder, around the world," and says it also operated against civilian and military targets in European allies of Ukraine (unsealed Manhattan indictment).
- The Department of Justice has charged five alleged Russian agents in a plot that included targeting a prominent Russian dissident in the United States (DOJ).
- NPR reports an alleged July–August 2026 operation in which Venezuelan defendant Angel Eduardo Castro and Cuban defendant Yaidel Delgado Suarez used encrypted messaging to direct a Venezuelan citizen living in Brooklyn ("U.S. Resident 1") to surveil two addresses tied to the unnamed dissident in the U.S. (Angel Eduardo Castro).
- According to the indictment as summarized by NPR, Suarez allegedly said the person at the addresses was someone they "want to eliminate they want to disappear," offered $40,000 "for whoever does the work," and when U.S. Resident 1 refused, asked if he knew "someone who wants to do construction" (prosecutors say this was coded language), saying he faced pressure from his boss and had a team in Mexico that could carry out the operation (Yaidel Delgado Suarez).
- All five defendants are alleged members of a broader "RIS Network" that NPR says has conducted hybrid operations since at least 2024, a group described as operating globally; the article notes the defendants remain at large (RIS Network).
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- NPR reports the unsealed Manhattan indictment describes the network as "one arm of the Russian Federation's apparatus used to carry out external attacks, including murder, around the world," and says it also operated against civilian and military targets in European allies of Ukraine.
- The article details an alleged July–August 2026 plot in which Venezuelan defendant Angel Eduardo Castro and Cuban defendant Yaidel Delgado Suarez allegedly used encrypted messaging to direct a Venezuelan citizen living in Brooklyn ("U.S. Resident 1") to surveil two addresses tied to a prominent, unnamed Russian dissident in the U.S.
- According to the indictment as summarized by NPR, Suarez allegedly told the recruit the person at the addresses was someone they "want to eliminate they want to disappear" and offered $40,000 "for whoever does the work."
- NPR adds that when U.S. Resident 1 said he would not commit murder, Suarez allegedly asked if he knew "someone who wants to do construction," which prosecutors interpret as coded language for carrying out the killing, and said he faced pressure from his boss and had a team in Mexico that could do the job.
- The article emphasizes that all five defendants are alleged members of a broader "RIS Network" engaged in hybrid operations since at least 2024, adding narrative detail around the global scope but confirming all remain at large.