Speaking at the Council of Heads of Security Agencies and Special Services of the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) countries taking place in the Kyrgyz capital this Friday, the senior official stated that the terrorists themselves admitted that they flew from the Turkish city of Istanbul.

Bortnikov added that one of those detained on suspicion of the Crocus City Hall attack admitted that he arrived in Russia from Türkiye on March 4, and he was offered half a million rubles (about 5,500 dollars) to kill people.

Another defendant, Shamsidin Fariduni, posted photos from Istanbul on his Instagram account in February.

Bortnikov added that the terrorists were contacted online by members of the Islamic State of Khorasan (it belongs to the Afghan wing of the Daesh group, a self-proclaimed Islamic State outlawed in Russia for terrorism), who were in the area of Afghanistan and Pakistan.

The Russian FSB director also noted that more than 20 people were detained in the course of the investigation, including the perpetrators and accomplices.

On March 22, a group of gunmen fired on a crowd gathered at the Crocus City Hall in Moscow, the capital of Russia, just minutes before a rock band’s concert.

The shooting was followed by a fire, leaving 145 people dead and more than 550 wounded, according to the latest official data.

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