Russian media: 30 injured in St. Petersburg cafe explosion

The number of injuries as a result of the explosion at a cafe in central St. Petersburg on April 2 has risen to 30, CNN reported, citing Russian media.

Twenty-four people were taken to medical facilities and six people “sought medical help on their own sometime after the incident,” Russian state-controlled news agency TASS reported, citing Russia’s Health Ministry.

Earlier, Russia’s Interior Ministry said that the cause of the explosion, which also killed Russian propagandist and war correspondent Vladlen Tatarsky, is under investigation.

The cafe reportedly once belonged to Yevgeny Prigozhin, the head of Wagner Group, a notorious Russian private military company which continues to play a key role in Russia’s war against Ukraine.

A video posted to Telegram showed a large detonation going off on the first floor of a large building in St. Petersburg, where Tatarsky was reportedly hosting an event for followers of his coverage of the war.

According to unconfirmed reports on Telegram channels, the explosive was concealed in a trophy that Tatarsky was given at the event.

Russian outlet Fontanka reported that according to people in attendance, the explosion happened five minutes after a female visitor handed Tatarsky the trophy, thought to contain several hundred grams of explosive material.

Tatarsky, who was born Maksim Fomin in the now-occupied parts of Donetsk Oblast in Ukraine, was one of the most well-known "independent" propaganda correspondents, consistently agitating for the further conquering of Ukrainian territory.

The military blogger's Telegram channel, where he posted news, analysis, video and photo material from the front lines has over half a million followers.

Tatarsky reportedly served time in prison in Ukraine since 2011 but managed to join the Russian armed forces during the beginning of Russia's war in 2014.

High-profile Russian propagandist killed in explosion in St Petersburg cafe

An explosion in a cafe in the center of St. Petersburg killed Russian propagandist and war correspondent Vladlen Tatarsky and injured 15 other people on April 2, Russian media reported.

Kyiv IndependentThe Kyiv Independent news desk