Spain police suspect bullet-riddled body may be Russian who defected with helicopter

Spanish police said Tuesday they suspect the bullet-riddled body of a man found in an eastern town is that of Russian defector Maksim Kuzminov, who flew a Russian army helicopter on his escape across the front lines last year

MADRID -- Spanish police said Tuesday they suspect the bullet-riddled body of a man found in an eastern town is that of Russian defector Maksim Kuzminov, who flew a Russian army helicopter on his escape across the front lines last year.

Andrii Yusov, a representative of Ukrainian military intelligence, confirmed to local media that the former Russian pilot had died in Spain, but didn’t provide details.

Spain's Civil Guard said they found false documents on a body discovered Feb. 13 in the entrance to a residential complex in La Cala, near the eastern port city of Alicante.

They said the documents identified the man as a 33-year-old Ukrainian, but police now believe it could be Kuzminov.

Kuzminov defected last year by flying into Ukraine in a Mi-8 army helicopter with the help of Ukrainian intelligence.