Terrorist attack in Rivne on March 20. SBU announces detention of those involved and discloses details

Law enforcement officers detained a number of people involved in the terrorist attack in Rivne in late March this year. Among them are minors. This was reported by Security Service of Ukraine.

The SBU managed to identify three groups of people who were carrying out Russia's tasks. It was established that the occupants planned to carry out a terrorist attack against the employees of the district police department in Rivne when a large number of law enforcement officers would be near the unit. However, due to a coincidence, the improvised explosive device detonated ahead of time.

The SBU identified and detained a person who manufactured the explosives that detonated in the car on Russia's order. The man was a 41-year-old drug addict from Rivne who was looking for "quick" money on Telegram, where he was recruited by the Russian special service.

To fulfill the order, the man engaged three other residents of Rivne to help him find and purchase the necessary components for the explosive device.

According to the instructions provided by the occupiers, the man made a remote detonation mechanism with remote access for Russian special services. He activated the explosives, disguising them in a metal box for an alcoholic beverage, and left them in a cache, and sent the geolocation to his Russian supervisor.

Russian special services engaged two more 16-year-old girls from Rivne to "cover their tracks". The minors took the activated explosive device from the cache and disguised it as a gift according to the "plan".

In one of the most visited shopping centers in Rivne, they wrapped an already activated explosive device in gift paper and moved it across the city to an unknown man, who was pointed out to them by a "curator".

He turned out to be a resident of Kharkiv, who was involved in the direct execution of the terrorist attack by the Russian special services "in the dark".

A man looking for "easy money" on Telegram met a representative of the Russian secret service who promised him money for the task.

According to the "plan," he came to Rivne and rented an apartment in the regional center. He used a messenger to find a place from his Russian handler where he picked up a "gift" from two girls, which he was supposed to deliver to the police department. To do this, he used a taxi.

While the Kharkiv resident was in a taxi, an accidental notification was sent to his cell phone, which was connected to the explosives, causing the detonation of the explosive device. As a result of the explosion, the taxi driver and a passenger were injured.

The man who made the explosives was served with a notice of suspicion on three articles (terrorist act, illegal handling of explosives, illegal manufacture of an explosive device).

A 16-year-old resident of Rivne, who was directly involved in the terrorist attack, was served a notice of suspicion of illegal handling of explosives.

The issue of serving a notice of suspicion to other persons involved in the terrorist attack is now being resolved.

• on March 7, 2025, the SBU announced the detention of a woman who was preparing a terrorist attack near the Rivne shopping center building.
• On March 20, an explosion was reported in a car in the center of Rivne. The SBU said it was investigating the incident as an attempted terrorist attack.