Russian artist known as Putin critic shot dead in eastern Poland

A Russian artist and cartoonist known for mocking Russian President Vladimir Putin was shot dead in eastern Poland on Monday in what Polish media are describing as a possible "execution-style" killing.

The victim has been identified by several Polish broadcasters as Semyon Skrepetsky, a 44-year-old Russian citizen who had been living in the city of Biala Podlaska close to the Belarusian border.

Police confirmed that a 44-year-old Russian national was shot on a street near the city center Monday morning and later died of his injuries. The attacker, or attackers, fled the scene.

One Polish broadcaster reported that a Belarusian citizen was detained near the Belarusian consulate in Biała Podlaska shortly after the shooting, though authorities have not officially confirmed any arrest.

Polish prosecutors and police have launched an investigation, with further details expected in the coming days. At present, there is no public evidence linking the shooting directly to Russian state actors, and Polish investigators have not announced any motive.

The killing comes amid heightened tensions between Poland and Russia. Warsaw has repeatedly accused Moscow and its ally Belarus of conducting hybrid operations against Poland, including cyberattacks, sabotage attempts, disinformation campaigns and the orchestration of migrant pressure on the European Union's eastern border.

According to police spokesman Andrzej Fijolek, the circumstances suggest a targeted killing.

"If someone approaches a specific person on the street and fires shots, everything indicates they planned to kill them," he told Polish media, while stressing that investigators have not yet established a motive.

Polish broadcasters TVN and wPolsce24 reported that the victim was Skrepetsky, an artist whose satirical cartoons frequently mocked Putin, Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov and other figures associated with the Russian government. He reportedly left Russia in 2021, fearing political persecution.

Just days before his death, Skrepetsky took part in a protest outside the Russian embassy in Berlin. Images circulated on social media showed him carrying artwork depicting Soviet leader Joseph Stalin feeding a baby Putin.

Polish authorities have in recent years detained individuals accused of spying for Russia and Belarus and have publicly warned that Russian intelligence services remain active across Central Europe. Several European countries have also reported suspected Russian-linked sabotage operations since the start of Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022.

If confirmed as a targeted killing of an anti-Kremlin artist living in exile, the case would inevitably draw comparisons with previous attacks on Russian dissidents, journalists and critics both inside Russia and abroad.

Among the most prominent examples is the 2006 murder of Russian journalist Anna Politkovskaya, who was shot dead after years of criticism of the Kremlin and the war in Chechnya.

For Poland, the case is particularly sensitive because it occurred near the Belarusian border at a time when security services are already on heightened alert over Russian and Belarusian activities in the region.