Russia-linked operatives accused of murder-for-hire plot in Washington, DC

U.S. prosecutors unsealed charges against five men tied to Russian intelligence who allegedly ran a global network to surveil Kremlin critics and recruit assassins. In Washington, the operation allegedly directed a US-based Venezuelan citizen to film two locations tied to a Kremlin critic and offered about $40,000 to kill him; the recruit completed surveillance but refused to act. Prosecutors say the network sought other US-based recruits and had operatives in Mexico, with the group implicated in broader plots abroad. All five defendants remain at large.