How Russian defector pilot 'got a new identity' before being shot by 'Putin hit squad' near Benidorm

THE RUSSIAN defector believed to have been murdered by a Kremlin assassin in Spain was living under the secret identity of a Ukrainian man.

Police believe the pilot, called a traitor and found “riddled” with Russian bullets, was taken out by trained assassins who fled the country.

4

4

Maxim Kuzminov fled Russia last year in a stolen helicopter and lived in Spain under the name Igor Schevchenko – an identity believed to have been given by Ukraine.

The 28-year-old's body was found in an underground car park near Benidorm on February 13, causing confusion among investigators about his true identity.

He was shot six times with Russian-made bullets and run over, with Spanish intelligence all but confirming their murder theory. El Pais reported.

Kuzminov stole a £15 million Russian armored helicopter in August and flew it to a military airbase in Kharkov – apparently with a promise of £400,000 for the valuable equipment.

Ukrainian authorities are also said to have submitted a convincing passport showing Kuzminov's face under the name Igor Schevchenko. El Periodico reports.

It was issued just weeks after he defected from Russia on September 22 and listed Donetsk as his place of birth in 1990, making him five years older.

Moscow raged that the helicopter pilot was a “traitor to the motherland” and state television openly broadcast the planned hit.

Today, Putin's lapdog Dmitry Medvedev said, “A dog dies a dog's death,” when asked about Kuzminov's alleged murder.

Informacion said sources close to the investigation believe the Russian ammunition was used to cruelly convey that he was executed as punishment on Kremlin orders.

And on Wednesday, Sergei Naryshkin, head of Russia's foreign intelligence service, claimed Kuzminov became a “moral corpse” as soon as he planned his trip to Ukraine.

He raged: 'In Russia it is customary to either speak well of the dead or nothing at all.

“This traitor and criminal became a moral corpse the moment he planned his vile and terrible crime.”

Police also believe that the “professionals” who killed him closely monitored his daily routine and had installed cameras in the garage where he was killed. El Español reported.

Ukrainian military intelligence confirmed reports that Kuzimov had defected there in a Russian helicopter – and that they hoped he could convince other pilots to follow his lead.

The brave pilot had called Putin's brutal war in Ukraine a “genocide against the Ukrainian people, both Ukrainian and Russian.”

And warped Russian state media hit back with claims he shot dead two crew members aboard the helicopter before landing in Ukraine.

Ukrainian spy chief Kyrylo Budanov said they were killed trying to escape after landing.

Russian special forces were also seen on state television broadcasts giving grim reports of orders to kill him.

“The order (to kill Captain Kuzminov) has been received, its execution is a matter of time,” one person warned.

And another said: “He will not live until the trials. We cannot let this go. We will punish him no matter what.”

While Spanish officials are still pushing for fingerprints, DNA or dental records to officially confirm his identity, they have promised a “strong response” to Russia if the murder theory is upheld.

It is not yet clear whether Spanish intelligence services and government officials knew the defector had entered the country.

A getaway car used by the killers was stolen from a nearby Spanish province after the murder and was later set on fire as police pursued theories that the killing squad had already fled.

Government spokesman Pilar Alegria said on Tuesday: “We must let the Guardia Civil do their job and let the investigation progress.”

Russian tyrant Putin has a long and well-documented history of killing “traitors,” even on foreign soil.

And state media immediately reported on Kuzminov's death, describing problems with alcohol and drugs and calling him an “uncomfortable and dangerous witness.”

Defected Russian spy Alexander Litvinenko was murdered in Britain in 2006 with plutonium and in 2018 with a double agent Sergei Skripal was nearly knocked out by a Soviet-era nerve agent Novichok hit.

The disturbing news of Kuzminov's death came just days after Putin's greatest enemy Alexei Navalny was reportedly murdered with a blow to the heart by the KGB.

4

4