In a recent development in France, authorities have taken four individuals into custody over allegations of a conspiracy to assassinate Vladimir Osechkin, a prominent critic of Russian President Vladimir Putin. The arrest comes amid suspicions that these individuals may have been operating under the influence of Russian intelligence services, with the plot purportedly targeting Osechkin’s residence in the southwest of France earlier this year.

Osechkin, known for his outspoken stance on prison rights and his critical view of Russia’s penal system, was forced into exile after revealing the harsh realities of Russian prisons. He has publicly suggested that the Russian security apparatus is likely orchestrating efforts to eliminate him, citing evidence provided by French authorities, including surveillance footage capturing his home.

The French anti-terror prosecution office, responsible for managing the case, reported that the suspects, aged between 26 and 38, were apprehended on Monday. However, they have not disclosed details regarding the suspects’ nationalities, potential motives, or any direct connections to foreign intelligence agencies. Osechkin has indicated that he suspects some of those detained hail from Dagestan, a predominantly Muslim region in southern Russia.

Currently, the four individuals remain in custody under a preliminary charge related to terrorism. This charge allows investigators to prolong their detention as they delve deeper into the investigation. The authorities have yet to release further specifics as the probe continues to unfold.

He believes some of the men detained are from Dagestan, a majority Muslim republic in southern Russia.

Following questioning, France’s anti-terror prosecution office said the four men are being kept in detention on a preliminary terror-related charge, enabling investigators to continue holding them while the probe continues.

French officials did not confirm there had been an attempt on Osechkin’s life.

‘I saw how everyone was filming, how they prepared the sites from which to shoot,’ he told the Associated Press, adding he believes ‘this was an expensive special operation, sanctioned and financed from Moscow.’

Four men have been arrested in France on suspicion of plotting to kill exiled Russian rights activist Vladimir Osechkin (pictured)

The AP did not immediately receive a reply from the Russian Foreign Ministry over the allegations.

The French intelligence service is among multiple European agencies that have been investigating what Western officials say is a broad campaign of alleged Russian sabotage and hybrid warfare targeting European allies of Ukraine. 

That campaign has included multiple arson attacks across Europe, as well as cyberattacks and espionage.

Four European intelligence officials told the AP earlier this year that Moscow is threatening exiled opponents and running what they described as an assassination program targeting perceived enemies of the state. 

That has included attempts to assassinate high-profile figures such as Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky while in Poland and the head of a German arms manufacturer that provides weapons to Ukraine. 

The officials spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss sensitive matters.

The Kremlin has previously denied Russia is carrying out a sabotage campaign against the West.

Osechkin has long suspected that he could be targeted for possible assassination because of his work, even in exile in Biarritz, the beach resort town on southwest France’s Atlantic seaboard where he lives. He said there have been several threats on his life since 2022, most recently in February this year.

Osechkin said he believed Putin’s security services were behind a plot to kill him

He said the suspects ‘circled the area’ and filmed in detail the place where he regularly did livestreams on his social media channels and looked for escape routes to leave unnoticed.

Osechkin said he believes he is only alive because French police previously provided him with protection. He said he remains at risk although French police carried out arrests in the wake of earlier death threats, adding that he and his family are often moved to safe houses when new threats emerge.

‘Those who were arrested are just a part of the overall picture, they are part of a big team,’ he said.

During questioning, Osechkin said French authorities asked him about his activities and ‘in what way this could cause anger and aggression from the Kremlin, Putin and his intelligence services and why they are trying to kill me.’

Osechkin sought political asylum in France after fleeing Russia under pressure from authorities over his prison activism. 

His group routinely publishes videos and accounts of alleged torture and corruption in Russian prisons, and he was among the first to reveal that Russia’s military was recruiting prisoners to fight in Ukraine.

His group, Gulagu.net, also helped bring Russian fugitive paratrooper Pavel Filatiev to France in 2022. Filatiev served in Ukraine war before being injured, and later published accounts online of what he saw, accusing the Russian military leadership of betraying their own troops out of incompetence and corruption.

Other Russian defectors have been killed.

Putin has been accused of threatening exiled opponents and running what has been described as an assassination program targeting perceived enemies of the state

In 2024, Spanish police found the bullet-riddled body of Russian helicopter pilot Maxim Kuzminov in southern Spain. He escaped across the front lines and into Ukraine with a helicopter in 2023. 

The head of Russia’s Foreign Intelligence Service, Sergei Naryshkin, subsequently told Russian journalists that Kuzminov was a ‘traitor and criminal’ who was a ‘moral corpse.’

Osechkin suggested other critics of Putin’s ‘regime’ including Russian opposition figures and journalists are also at risk and said the goal was not only to silence him but also them.

‘This isn’t just about the killing of me as an individual,’ Osechkin said, but also an attempt ‘to frighten other human rights activists into reducing their activity or stopping it altogether.’