The FSB security agency of Russia reported that four individuals apprehended on Sunday in an intercepted “terror” scheme had supplied funds and weaponry for the recent fatal assault on a Moscow music venue.
Over 140 individuals lost their lives as armed assailants raided the Crocus City Hall premises on March 22, subsequently igniting the structure in what marks the deadliest assault in Russia in twenty years.
The FSB said in a statement on Monday that it had arrested a group of four a day earlier in the southern Dagestan region who “were directly involved in the financing and supply of terrorist means to the perpetrators of the terrorist act carried out on 22 March in the Crocus City Hall in Moscow.”
Three individuals were apprehended by Russia’s national anti-terrorism committee on Sunday for allegedly scheming to perpetrate a series of terrorist crimes.
Four foreign citizens were apprehended in the operation conducted by the FSB on Monday in the regional capital of Makhachkala and the nearby town of Kaspiysk.
The Interfax news agency cited an FSB video showing one of the detained men saying, “I took weapons to them, these guys who attacked Crocus City Hall. I took them weapons from Makhachkala.”
Previously, Russian authorities had stated the capture of 12 individuals allegedly associated with the attack, including the four suspected gunmen identified as citizens of Tajikistan.
The Islamic State (IS) has claimed responsibility for the massacre, the most deadly it says it has ever carried out on European soil, though President Vladimir Putin has talked up a Ukrainian and Western connection.
Kyiv and the West have repeatedly denied any involvement and accused Moscow of “exploiting” the tragedy.
Read also: Ukraine Financially Backed Moscow Concert Hall Attack –Russia
Dagestan is a Muslim-majority region in Russia’s southern Caucasus region.
The FSB has come under scrutiny over its failure to thwart the attack despite private and public warnings by the US intelligence community that “extremists” were planning an “imminent” attack on “large gatherings” in Moscow.
The organization frequently publicizes its success in thwarting purported “terrorist cells,” yet in recent times, it has predominantly highlighted the apprehension of individuals it alleges to be pro-Ukrainian saboteurs planning assaults on Russian military installations and critical infrastructure.
Russian President Vladimir Putin condemned the attack as a barbaric act of terrorism, promising to mete out punishment to those behind it.
He announced on Saturday that a total of 11 individuals, including four gunmen, had been apprehended.
Monday was declared a national day of mourning by him, with an emphasis on the reinforcement of security measures throughout Russia.
After their assault on a concert hall near Moscow claimed the lives of 143 individuals, the Islamic State group stated that four of its members had been arrested. This disclosure came one day after Russia attributed blame to Ukraine.