Media outlets reported today (Tuesday) that the body of Maxim Kuzminov, a pilot of the Russian army who defected during the war, was found in the town of Villajoyosa in Alicante on the Mediterranean coast. The deceased was found with signs of a gunshot wounds on his body.
According to reports, Kuzminov landed his twin-engine Mi-8 AMTS helicopter in Ukrainian territory last year following an elaborate six-month operation by Ukraine's intelligence service to lure the pilot. He then lived in Spain under a false identity using a Ukrainian passport and was killed by unknown gunmen last Tuesday.
In Moscow, the Russian intelligence chief described the Russian pilot as a "moral corpse" because he betrayed his country. This was the Kremlin's first response to the affair since his death was reported.
