Escort Turned Assassin in Crimea
Russian authorities have arrested a former escort named Margarita Reut in the killing of a Ukrainian defector in Crimea last week.
Robert Shageev (spelled Shahieiev or Shagayev in some sources) defected from Ukraine to Russia in 2014 after the occupation of Crimea. He had previously commanded the Ukrainian Navy’s only submarine, the Foxtrot-class diesel sub ‘Zaporizhzhia’, which was captured by Russian forces in 2014. According to reporting at Liga.net, following his defection he was promoted to Captain 1st Rank and served as deputy commander of the 4th Independent Submarine Brigade.
The explosive device was planted in a trash can near a bench on Stoletovsky Prospekt. Shageev was caught in the blast and died at the scene. Authorities detained Reut, who is suspected of placing a backpack containing the explosive device in the trash can shortly beforehand.
According to the Telegraph, Reut is a Russian national and lived in Sochi, a resort city on the Black Sea. She took frequent trips to Crimea and allegedly appeared on escort websites while also working as a biologist in a laboratory. In July 2025 she was detained by police for two days and fined 30,000 rubles after allegedly shouting in public “serves you right, Russians!” in response to the news of a Ukrainian drone attack on the Likhaya railway station in Russia’s Rostov region. She also allegedly posted on social media that she was ashamed to be Russian in February 2026.
This is just the latest in a series of explosions which have targeted senior Russian military officers. On August 1st, Colonel General Alexander Chayko was unscathed in a bombing which killed at least five others at a popular Moscow restaurant.
Read more:
https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2026/08/13/woman-assassinates-ukrainian-submarine-commander-who-defect/
