Spectacular prisoner swap with Germany?: Putin wants his Tiergarten killer back

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Vadim Krasikov (58) has been sentenced to life in prison. In August 2019, the Russian coldly murdered Selimchan Changoschwili (1979-2019) in the Kleiner Tiergarten in Berlin (D). The Georgian-born Chechen fought alongside separatist militias in the Chechen war and is considered a terrorist in Russia.

His murder happened in broad daylight. The perpetrator approached his victim from behind on his bicycle and shot twice with a silencer pistol. When Changoshvili was on the ground, Krasikov shot him again in the back of the head. On behalf of the Russian secret service FSB, the court ruled at the end of 2021. Due to these circumstances, early release is practically impossible, Spiegel reports.

Krasikov’s trade has been wanted for a long time

But that is exactly what Vladimir Putin (70) is now trying to do. He was very interested in arranging Krasikov’s return to Russia as part of a prisoner exchange. This is reported by the “Wall Street Journal” (“WSJ”), citing representatives of the Western government.

It is not the first time that the Kremlin has put Krasikov, whose statement has been described as ‘politically motivated’ by the Russian government, on its exchange wish list. Already in 2021, shortly before the verdict was announced, Putin is said to have instructed Nikolai Patrushev (72, head of the Security Council) to take appropriate measures.

During negotiations over the release of basketball player Brittney Griner (32), Russia also indicated that it wanted to get the zoo killer back. Griner was released from prison at the end of last year – in exchange for arms dealer Wiktor But (56). At the time, the US had apparently refused to interfere in German affairs.

Deal difficult for Germany

Now Washington is said to have changed its mind. Journalist Evan Gershkovich (32) and ex-soldier Paul Whelan (53) are currently imprisoned in Russia. Whelan was sentenced to 16 years in prison before the war in Ukraine for alleged espionage. Gershkovich was arrested in Russia in March 2023. He is accused of collecting classified information about the Russian weapons complex for US agencies. His detention was extended until November. The Biden administration is eager to release the two American citizens.

But according to the report, Krasikov plays an even bigger role for Putin. That is why there could even be talk of a multilateral prisoner exchange, with Alexei Navalny (47) one of the candidates. Russia’s most famous opposition politician has been behind bars since 2021.

Germany had not yet commented on whether Krasikov’s exchange would be considered. But such a deal would be extremely politically sensitive for Berlin, the sources at “WSJ” believe. Because the murder of Tiergarten caused great outrage among the population. (man)

Source: Blick