Moscow car explosion
Questions continue to surround the bombing that reportedly killed Lieutenant General Damir Davydov. Yaroslav Trofimov Twitter

Damir Davydov, a senior Russian military official who was responsible for supplying missiles and artillery ammunition to the country's armed forces, reportedly died in a car bombing incident in Moscow, Russia, on Tuesday, 9 June. Given that he was a Vladimir Putin crony, Davydov was believed to be moving secretly, with only people close to him aware of where he was and of his movements.

With assassins allegedly hunting him down, the Lieutenant General was understandably keeping a low profile, aware that his life may have been in danger. Unfortunately, a social media post reportedly gave away his location, allowing assassins to find and kill him for his role under Putin.

According to The Insider, people who were hunting down Davydov got a critical tip after the military official's son, Rafael, put up a post on social media. The Russian cadet posted a photo showing him posing behind a BMW, a vehicle that closely resembled the car that was blown up with Davydov on board.

From that photo of Rafael, assassins were able to trace the vehicle through the car number plate that was clearly visible in the social media post. After locating Davydov's car, the perpetrators took steps to ensure the military official was eliminated.

That came in the form of a huge explosion that rocked Balashikha on Tuesday. Given the magnitude of the explosion, it is believed that the power of the blast was equivalent to up to 500 grams of TNT.

No Chance of Survival

Even after the explosion, bystanders were still able to pull Davydov from the wreckage. However, the injuries he sustained from the blast were devastating, which was a reason why responders hardly gave him a chance to survive.

'All of his clothes were on fire. I put out the flames on his T-shirt and tore it off so it wouldn't burn his skin ... Looking at him, it was clear he was unlikely to survive,' an unnamed person who helped pull Davydov from the wreckage said in a report by The Guardian.

It was one of two car bombs that went off on Tuesday. The other incident reportedly happened in south-west Moscow. In that other incident, the target was allegedly an employee of a scientific production enterprise according to a report by NBC News. It remains unclear how the bomb was detonated in that incident.

However, authorities have reportedly arrested two teenage suspects in that bombing incident. According to information available as of this writing, a teenage girl was told by unidentified people to pick up the bomb and hand it to a teenage boy. It was the teenage boy who placed it on the car, along with a GPS tracker, according to Russia's state Investigative Committee.

Ukraine Stays Silent

With the two car bombing incidents, Ukraine has been mentioned as the potential mastermind behind both. As of this writing, however, Ukrainian authorities have yet to comment or issue a statement on the attacks.

Regardless of whether they were or were not behind it, it is hardly surprising that Ukraine has been singled out as a likely suspect. Since the start of the war involving the two countries, Ukrainian intelligence agencies have allegedly targeted dozens of senior Russian military officers and Moscow-installed officials situated in occupied territories. These individuals have been identified and accused of being involved in war crimes.

For Russia, the car bombing incidents are also a warning sign for the country to ramp up its security measures, especially for its senior officials. The security level for officials, including Putin, is already at a heightened level, but it appears Russia may need to increase that even more.

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