In the words of the FSB the group was “a secret supporter group who believed in the concept of Ukrainian nationalists”. As per the FSB’s announcement the group refused to be arrested and fired on FSB officers prior to being killed and destroyed in the aftermath. Images of the attack were released.
It turns out that the three people that FSB executed were all innocent citizens who used to dress as people from S.T.A.L.K.E.R The Shadows of Chernobyl.
In the footage that is broadcast by Russian state-owned television it is clear that the British flag is visible in the walls of the cell house, along with an American flag is displayed with the head of a wolf in front of it. There is also the notebook belonging to the Svoboda Group in the footage.
Ukraine is home to an ultranationalist group known as Svoboda however it’s part of one faction that make up S.T.A.L.K.E.R. : Shadow of Chernobyl. And the images displayed in the room are not belonging to any political group, rather to the faction that plays the game.
In The Moscow Times, two of the three individuals were known to the Voronezh airsoft (military conflict simulation) community. One person even had their pseudonym Stalker Phosgene. They are S.T.A.L.K.E.R. It is possible to identify players who develop their own LARP (live play-based role playing game) from their games. Also, Moscow Times reached the social media accounts of murder victims and their companions. The names used were Stalker Phosgene Vladimir Kotovsky and his colleagues from Voronezh and the surrounding areas were identified as S.T.A.L.K.E.R. There were numerous photos taken when she was playing the role as well as the wolf-headed emblem of her faction that was displayed on one of her social media accounts. This group was part of an LARP local club who took on the role of Stalkers by using airguns. You can find the details of the incident by following the tweet chain. There are also images of the operation (+18) within the questions section.
It appears that the FSB made a big mistake and killed three innocent participants. Even though it is true that the Moscow Times has investigated this investigation, it’s unlikely to be closed without government investigation. What will be the fate of the three individuals.
