The car blast that killed journalist Pavel Sheremet in Kyiv on July 20 morning was caused by an improvised caseless explosive device equivalent to 400 to 600 grams of TNT, Zoryan Shkiryak, an adviser to the Ukrainian interior minister, said on Facebook on July 20.
“Preliminarily. An improvised caseless explosive device was set off, possibly a remote-controlled or delayed-action device. Preliminarily, equivalent to 400 to 600 grams of TNT. Pavel Sheremet’s killers acted skillfully,” Shkiryak said.
Search and investigative procedures are underway; in particular, demolition experts are currently working at the scene, Shkiryak said. “All possible theories behind this cold-blooded crime have been pursued. Details to be available later,” he said.
Ukrainian Information Policy Minister Yuriy Stets said he planned to propose at a government meeting that the security agencies put together an interagency task force to investigate Sheremet’s death as quickly and efficiently as possible. “It is extremely important for the state and for each of us to prove that freedom of speech and a journalist’s professional work are values that are more than significant, especially at this challenging time,” the ministry press service quoted Stets as saying.
