Reuters
A Russian proxy leader in charge of a town in Ukraine’s occupied Zaporizhzhia region has been killed by a car bomb, the latest in a growing list of Kremlin-appointed officials to be offed as the Kremlin tries to strengthen its grip on stolen territories.
Ivan Sushko, the head of Mykhailivka in the Zaporizhzhia region, was blown up when a bomb planted underneath the seat of his vehicle by unknown assailants detonated, according to Vladimir Rogov, a representative of the local Russian-proxy administration.
Rogov announced on Telegram that Sushko was rushed to a hospital in critical condition after the blast, but he succumbed to his injuries there. The death of Sushko—who reportedly made his living as a toastmaster at weddings and Santa Claus before being appointed to run Mykahilivka in April—comes just a day after local authorities said another Russian proxy leader survived a similar assassination attempt.