Russia recruits individuals for sabotage through computer games. In Ukraine's Bucha, a man, 21, has been engaged in the crimes via the well-known game World of Tanks, UNIAN reports.
On the morning of 23 March, a local resident heard an explosion of an unidentified object near an apartment building in Bucha. After law enforcement officers arrived at the scene, a second explosion took place. Two officers were injured and hospitalized by the blast.
Police later reported the detention of a 21-year-old local resident suspected of involvement in the attack.
Blackmail and fear: how a player was turned into a perpetrator
According to the suspect, he had conversations with an unknown individual through an online game. The new acquaintance later began blackmailing him, claiming to know his mother’s location and allegedly monitoring her using a drone.
In order to protect her, the young man was forced to plant explosives. The Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) stated that, according to preliminary data, he had been recruited by Russian intelligence services via the internet.
He received instructions on how to manufacture improvised explosive devices, which he equipped with mobile phones for remote detonation.
One device was hidden under a bench near a building entrance, and another near a garbage container.
How gaming platforms become tools of influence
The game was developed by Wargaming, which had a significant market presence in Russia for a long time.
For years, the game existed only in Russian, per NV.
After the company exited the Russian market in 2022, Russian authorities began nationalizing its assets in 2025. Additionally, since the mid-2010s, Russia has enforced the so-called Yarovaya law, which obliges online services to store user communications and provide them to security agencies.
This may also apply to in-game chats, including those in World of Tanks, if they operate under Russian jurisdiction.
