Explosion at Elite Moscow Restaurant: General Accused of Bucha Massacre May Have Been Among Guests

On Saturday evening, an explosion tore through the upscale Moscow restaurant Balchug Rossi, killing three people and injuring 21 others. According to Russian military blogger Anatoly Shariy and the outlet Vazhnye Istorii, both citing contacts among the party's guests, General Alexander Chaiko, commander-in-chief of Russia's air forces, was reportedly present at the event.

The celebration marked two occasions at once — the general's 55th birthday and his recent appointment to a senior post. Chaiko's past carries particular weight: he commanded the Russian units accused of killing 554 civilians in and around the city of Bucha at the start of the war. Ukraine is currently trying him in absentia for war crimes.

Balchug Rossi, staffed by Italian chefs, is considered one of Moscow's most expensive establishments and a favored gathering spot for the country's elite. According to available reports, the guest list included army officers, FSB officials, and members of the State Duma.

The explosive device, packed with metal ball bearings, detonated on the body of a woman who had been stopped by security at the entrance. The woman herself, a security guard, and one of the guests were killed. Witnesses said the woman's body was torn apart, though it remains unclear whether she was a suicide bomber or was unaware of the bomb in her backpack. It is also possible the device was triggered remotely. The blast was powerful enough to shatter windows in buildings across the street.

Alexander Chaiko himself is reportedly alive and has been active on Telegram. Russian investigators have released almost no details about the incident.

"So far, all of this is just speculation. It could have been a Ukrainian operation — the method fits. This is exactly how Russian military blogger and propagandist Vladlen Tatarsky was killed in St. Petersburg in 2023. But Russians themselves have used similar methods too — a year ago, a woman brought a bomb into a police station in Odesa," said journalist Jiří Just, who lives in Moscow.

Chaiko took part in Russia's military operation in Syria starting in 2015 and returned there again in late 2024, when a surprise rebel offensive caught President Bashar al-Assad's regime off guard. Russia had backed Assad for nearly a decade but was unable to prevent his fall and ultimately withdrew its troops from the country.

After evidence of Russian occupation crimes emerged in Bucha and other towns, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky vowed that those responsible would be found — along with the pilots dropping bombs on residential buildings. "We will find all of you. We will not stop searching for those responsible for these atrocities, and we will find ways to punish them," he said at the time.

Ukrainian media have linked similar operations to the death of officer Stanislav Rzhitsky in Krasnodar in July 2023. He was shot while jogging in a park after failing to hide his data on Strava, the running app that tracks workouts — data visible to anyone. Rzhitsky had given the order to launch five Kalibr cruise missiles at Vinnytsia, killing 28 people, including three children.

Also killed was Captain Konstantin Nagaiko, who commanded Russia's 112th missile brigade and ordered the strike on the village of Hroza near Kharkiv, where 59 people died during a memorial gathering. He died in an explosion near Moscow at the start of last year.

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Around Prague, based on reporting by seznamzpravy.cz