MOSCOW, Dec. 7 (Xinhua) -- Ilya Kiva, a former member of the Ukrainian parliament, was killed with a silenced weapon on Wednesday in a hotel park near Moscow, local media reported Thursday.
An unknown assailant killed Kiva with a short-barreled gun with a silencer. His body was found in the park of the hotel where he was staying, reported TASS news agency.
According to the state-run RIA Novosti news agency, the Main Directorate of Intelligence (GUR) of the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine claimed responsibility for the death of Kiva. GUR's spokesperson Andrey Yusov admitted on television the involvement of GUR in the killing of the politician.
The Moscow region investigators have opened a criminal case of murder after the body of Kiva was found in one of the hotels in the village of Suponevo in the Odintsovo district. Police officers are working at the scene, clarifying all the circumstances of the incident, as well as seizing recordings from surveillance cameras.
In 2019, Kiva ran for the presidency of Ukraine but withdrew his candidacy. Later he was elected to the Verkhovna Rada, the Ukrainian parliament, becoming a member of the Committee on National Security and Defense.
In 2022, Kiva was deprived of his parliamentary mandate by the decision of the Central Election Commission of Ukraine. In November 2023, he was sentenced in absentia to 14 years in prison with confiscation of property for treason. ■
