Former ally of Yanukovych: Who was Armen Sargsyan, the man killed in an explosion in Moscow?

On Monday, February 3, an explosion occurred in the residential complex "Scarlet Sails" in Moscow. The target of the attack was Arman Sarkisyan, known as "Horlovskyi" – a criminal authority and founder of the "ArBat" battalion. During the explosion, his bodyguard was killed, and Sarkisyan later died in the hospital. Among the injured was former bodyguard of Viktor Yanukovych, Serhiy Shkryabatovskyi.

The explosion took place in the lobby of one of the entrances to the residential complex while Sarkisyan was there with his bodyguards. Footage published by the Investigative Committee of the Russian Federation shows broken windows in the entrance doors and part of the ceiling collapsed.

According to the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU), Sarkisyan has been on international wanted list since May 2014 on suspicion of organizing murders on Maidan in Kyiv. Since 2015, he has also been listed in the "Peacemaker" database. It is claimed that Sarkisyan "committed an attack on the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Ukraine" and was involved in illegal armed formations.

Sarkisyan was born in Armenia but moved to Horlivka in Donetsk region during his childhood. According to Ukrainian media, he began his criminal activities there in the 1990s, controlling the shadow business in the region, as reported by "Novaya Gazeta".

“He had his own gang and began working with the 'watcher' from Yenakiieve, Oleksandr Baturin, in the early 2000s, who is considered a trusted person of the criminal authority Yuriy Ivanyushchenko. Their activities involved criminal operations, intimidation of people, businessmen, and so on,” the media reported.

During the Euromaidan protests in 2014, Sarkisyan was reportedly one of the organizers of groups of "titushky" – hired thugs who attacked protest participants. "Ukrainska Pravda" reported that due to this activity, he is still wanted. He is specifically believed to be involved in the murder of journalist Vyacheslav Veremiy.

“Sarkisyan is considered the 'watcher' for Horlivka on behalf of Yura Yenakiivskyi,” journalist Denys Kazansky said. “In 2014, he sent his thugs to Kyiv to disperse Maidan. A criminal case has been opened in Ukraine regarding this matter. I attended Maidan in Donetsk in 2014, and his people attacked us, threatening us with weapons. Sarkisyan was among them; I personally saw him.”

Sarkisyan's family controlled all Armenian businesses in Horlivka. From the late 1990s, Arman quickly rose to prominence and became the 'watcher' for Horlivka. Since then, he was already referred to as Arman 'Horlovskyi,' said local resident Mykhailo.

Up until that moment, bandits received a share not only from trade but also from coal extraction and metal production. Additionally, Sarkisyan owned several restaurants and cafes. Rumors suggest he had close ties with Russian thieves in law, who established drug trafficking from Ukraine to Russia through him.

In 2014, when the war began in Donbas, Arman Horlovskyi left the city. However, he maintained his influence in the region. Sarkisyan retained a large criminal gang in the city, which even after the onset of open confrontation organized tours to Odesa and other Ukrainian cities.

“In Horlivka, there was a hotel 'Ellada' owned by Sarkisyan,” continued the local resident, “It housed a restaurant and a brothel. In 2014, Cossacks moved in there, who came to assist the 'DPR.' In 2016, Arman Horlovskyi demanded they return the beds stolen from the brothel. The whole city laughed at this. But when the bandit himself returned to his holdings, no one was laughing anymore. Arman quickly secured support from local authorities, befriended the mayor of Horlivka, Ivan Prykhodko, and, along with new associates, began to take over the entire economy of the region. Coal trading brought Sarkisyan enormous profits. Drug trafficking also resumed.”

“After 2022, Sarkisyan was seizing various enterprises in the occupied territories,” said Denys Kazansky. “He had a conflict with the wife of Hubariev in Kherson. She worked in the occupation administration there. He presented himself as the 'watcher' and demanded she transfer control over various enterprises in the city.”

In the summer of 2022, Arman Sarkisyan formed the "ArBat" battalion (Armenian battalion) based on his criminal group. It included ethnic Armenians who came from Armenia and other subordinates of the criminal authority.

According to Mykhailo S., by 2023, the battalion already numbered several hundred people. By 2024, the battalion was positioned in the Donetsk direction. However, after the invasion of Ukrainian troops into the Kursk region, "ArBat" was redeployed to this Russian region.

“My acquaintances in ArBat say they are participating in serious battles near Sudzha and suffering heavy losses there,” said our interlocutor from Horlivka. “At the same time, Sarkisyan has hardly ever been on the front line.”

The explosive device was planted in the entrance of the building where Arman Sarkisyan lived on the 20th floor. The device had a power equivalent to several hundred grams of TNT.

The current primary theory is a "Ukrainian trace." However, the investigation will also consider the hypothesis of criminal disputes.

It is noted that there are many surveillance cameras in the elite residential complex. Preliminary data suggest that the explosive device was planted by a woman of medium height.

Background. Recall that on December 17, 2024, in Moscow on Ryazansky Avenue, as a result of an explosion, the head of the radiation, chemical, and biological protection troops of the Armed Forces of Russia, Lieutenant General Igor Kirillov, and his assistant were killed.

The operation was organized by the Ukrainian special service. “Kirillov was a military criminal and a legitimate target, as he ordered the use of prohibited chemical weapons against Ukrainian troops,” a BBC source stated.