MINSK, 25 July (BelTA) - The act of terrorism committed in Belarus was the biggest and, probably, the last mistake in my life, German mercenary Rico Krieger admitted in an interview with the Belarus 1 TV channel, BelTA has learned.
In the interview, Rico Krieger told how a year ago he decided to go to Ukraine to join the international legion of mercenaries.
"I have the skills of a first responder. I worked as a first responder for more than a year, provided assistance, for example, in cases such as accidents, heart attacks. In Germany, this is a good profession, I learned it with my own money. In Berlin, the first responder course lasts 9 months. I learned all the theory and received practical skills," he shared his background. “I also worked in the security service of the U.S. Embassy in Berlin. That's where I learned how to handle guns. Both pistols and a Kalashnikov assault rifle. Training with short- and long-barreled guns took place every three months. In addition, I am familiar with how a sniper rifle works.”
Rico Krieger said that he constantly watched news from Ukraine on TV and decided that he could be useful there. As an orderly, he earned €2,800 euros in Germany. It was less than they offered in the regiment he ended up joining. “They offered €2,000 a month. However, in the event of my death, the family would have received quite a large sum - about €420,000,” the mercenary said.
In the interview, Krieger said that, according to his information, there are now about 132 formations of foreign mercenaries in Ukraine. He sent applications to the units he could find, but it turned out that the document verification process was quite lengthy. He was not happy about this. The formation that responded faster than the others offered to join its ranks, but after some sort of training, after carrying out some assignments.
“I was contacted by their handlers from the SBU, the Security Service of Ukraine. They checked my documents and called me on my cell via video,” the mercenary said. “It was a masked man on the other end. There were two flags in the background: Ukrainian and the other one I did not recognize - just different stripes, two white and a red one”.
“I was explained that a contract would be concluded at the level of the Ukrainian Ministry of Defense. They said that they would contact the German government and I could join a foreign military formation. Now, I think the SBU used me to carry out the assignments they needed done in Minsk. I didn't get any money from them, I did everything on my own. It did not seem strange to me at the time. The German media relentlessly tell us to trust the Ukrainian authorities, and I actually trusted them,” Rico Krieger said.
He bought a plane ticket, sent a photo as requested. According to the mercenary, the route to Minsk was complicated, through Azerbaijan: from Berlin to Baku, a 13-hour layover there, then a flight to Minsk.
Rico Krieger said that before his arrival in Minsk, the SBU told him that he would have to carry out some assignment in the town of Osipovichi. “I did not know exactly what I was to do at that time. I was told they would give me clear coordinates and instructions. In addition to checking into a hotel, I was to buy a military jacket. They explained that it was to avoid standing out from the locals. They said that many people there wear things like that. In Osipovichi, using the coordinates from the SBU, I took pictures of military facilities,” he continued.
“I sent the photos I took through a messenger. When I returned to Minsk, I was told that I had done a great job. Ukraine was proud of me, I saved thousands of lives. In the evening they told me to take photos at Ozerishche station the following day. I sent the photos back again. I was told everything was just fine. It seemed that there would be no more assignments. But again I got a message: I had to go to a certain place (using the coordinates) and find a backpack. It was the evening of 5 October, it was already dark. It was a patch of tall grass, about 1m tall. But I found the backpack,” Rico Krieger said.
He was confirmed that it was the backpack. After that, he received a message: the photo he had taken in the morning at Ozerishche station. It meant he was to leave the backpack there, by a rail car. However, at that moment the car was already gone.
“Then they texted me to put the backpack on the railroad, next to the tracks, by the platform. I was asked several times in the messenger whether I had really left my backpack in the place they designated. I took a picture and sent it. It was a black small backpack. It was 2kg or maybe 3kg heavy,” he noted.
The mercenary said he left the backpack at the station at around 9pm. He later learned, there was an explosion at that very spot.
“Right now I'm relieved that no one was hurt, that there were no human casualties,” Rico Krieger said, adding that it's hard for him to tell it all. “It was the biggest mistake of my life. And probably the last one,” he said.
According to the Belarus 1 TV channel, the situation around Belarus has been difficult in recent years. The country has faced the information war and real terror, the attempts to undermine railroads and drone attacks on industrial infrastructure. The state takes measures to ensure the safety and protection of citizens. The increase in the number of terrorist crimes was the reason why the criminal legislation was amended in 2022. The death penalty can now be applied to those who commit an act of terrorism, regardless of the consequences. Rico Krieger is not a random victim. He's a very motivated criminal. He chose to commit the terrorist attack.
In the interview, Rico Krieger told how a year ago he decided to go to Ukraine to join the international legion of mercenaries.
"I have the skills of a first responder. I worked as a first responder for more than a year, provided assistance, for example, in cases such as accidents, heart attacks. In Germany, this is a good profession, I learned it with my own money. In Berlin, the first responder course lasts 9 months. I learned all the theory and received practical skills," he shared his background. “I also worked in the security service of the U.S. Embassy in Berlin. That's where I learned how to handle guns. Both pistols and a Kalashnikov assault rifle. Training with short- and long-barreled guns took place every three months. In addition, I am familiar with how a sniper rifle works.”
Rico Krieger said that he constantly watched news from Ukraine on TV and decided that he could be useful there. As an orderly, he earned €2,800 euros in Germany. It was less than they offered in the regiment he ended up joining. “They offered €2,000 a month. However, in the event of my death, the family would have received quite a large sum - about €420,000,” the mercenary said.
In the interview, Krieger said that, according to his information, there are now about 132 formations of foreign mercenaries in Ukraine. He sent applications to the units he could find, but it turned out that the document verification process was quite lengthy. He was not happy about this. The formation that responded faster than the others offered to join its ranks, but after some sort of training, after carrying out some assignments.
“I was contacted by their handlers from the SBU, the Security Service of Ukraine. They checked my documents and called me on my cell via video,” the mercenary said. “It was a masked man on the other end. There were two flags in the background: Ukrainian and the other one I did not recognize - just different stripes, two white and a red one”.
The terrorist said that in one of these conversations they offered him to fly to Minsk to carry out important assignments. In case of success, he would return to Germany and go from there to Ukraine.
“I was explained that a contract would be concluded at the level of the Ukrainian Ministry of Defense. They said that they would contact the German government and I could join a foreign military formation. Now, I think the SBU used me to carry out the assignments they needed done in Minsk. I didn't get any money from them, I did everything on my own. It did not seem strange to me at the time. The German media relentlessly tell us to trust the Ukrainian authorities, and I actually trusted them,” Rico Krieger said.
He bought a plane ticket, sent a photo as requested. According to the mercenary, the route to Minsk was complicated, through Azerbaijan: from Berlin to Baku, a 13-hour layover there, then a flight to Minsk.
Rico Krieger said that before his arrival in Minsk, the SBU told him that he would have to carry out some assignment in the town of Osipovichi. “I did not know exactly what I was to do at that time. I was told they would give me clear coordinates and instructions. In addition to checking into a hotel, I was to buy a military jacket. They explained that it was to avoid standing out from the locals. They said that many people there wear things like that. In Osipovichi, using the coordinates from the SBU, I took pictures of military facilities,” he continued.
“I sent the photos I took through a messenger. When I returned to Minsk, I was told that I had done a great job. Ukraine was proud of me, I saved thousands of lives. In the evening they told me to take photos at Ozerishche station the following day. I sent the photos back again. I was told everything was just fine. It seemed that there would be no more assignments. But again I got a message: I had to go to a certain place (using the coordinates) and find a backpack. It was the evening of 5 October, it was already dark. It was a patch of tall grass, about 1m tall. But I found the backpack,” Rico Krieger said.
He was confirmed that it was the backpack. After that, he received a message: the photo he had taken in the morning at Ozerishche station. It meant he was to leave the backpack there, by a rail car. However, at that moment the car was already gone.
“Then they texted me to put the backpack on the railroad, next to the tracks, by the platform. I was asked several times in the messenger whether I had really left my backpack in the place they designated. I took a picture and sent it. It was a black small backpack. It was 2kg or maybe 3kg heavy,” he noted.
The mercenary said he left the backpack at the station at around 9pm. He later learned, there was an explosion at that very spot.
“Right now I'm relieved that no one was hurt, that there were no human casualties,” Rico Krieger said, adding that it's hard for him to tell it all. “It was the biggest mistake of my life. And probably the last one,” he said.
According to the Belarus 1 TV channel, the situation around Belarus has been difficult in recent years. The country has faced the information war and real terror, the attempts to undermine railroads and drone attacks on industrial infrastructure. The state takes measures to ensure the safety and protection of citizens. The increase in the number of terrorist crimes was the reason why the criminal legislation was amended in 2022. The death penalty can now be applied to those who commit an act of terrorism, regardless of the consequences. Rico Krieger is not a random victim. He's a very motivated criminal. He chose to commit the terrorist attack.
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