Minibus bomber in Tiraspol identified; bomb went off before its time

Bomb blast on minibus in Tiraspol left 7 dead, 24 injured

TIRASPOL (Tiraspol Times) - Although authorities prefer to not yet release his name for investigative reasons, they have now identified the man responsible for the minibus blast which took place on 6 July.

The blast killed seven people. At present, 21 people are hospitalized, of whom six are in a serious and life-threatening condition.

It is unlikely that this was a suicide bombing, with law enforcement instead speculating that the bomb went off before its intended time and target. According to unconfirmed information, similar explosive devices were found in the man's apartment.

The hospitalized driver of the minibus, Andrei Okhlopkov, who survived with injuries, said that he noticed a young man who entered the minibus with a huge rucksack. Several minutes after that the explosion took place. Of the seven dead passengers, five were women and one an elderly man, leaving only the identified passenger as the one matching both the gender and the age-group.

No known motive

Pridnestrovie's authorities have not yet been able to conclusively establish a motive for the bombing.

Initial speculation by Pridnestrovie's Vice Minister for Internal Affairs Oleg Belyakov linked the blast to Moldova's security services. Just days befor the bombing, the secret service of Moldova had pledged an "active involvement" in issues dealing with Transnistria, the name by which Moldova refers to Pridnestrovie. And less than 24 hours before the bombing, Moldova's sister-state Romania issued an imprecise statement calling Pridnestrovie "a threat to Romania" although not giving any details as to why, precisely, it feared the tiny micro-state. In Tiraspol, those syncronized developments were initially perceived as ominous warnings foreboding more to come.

Moldova's press, on the other hand, was quick to speculate that the explosion was caused by an internal feud in Pridnestrovie over what they claimed was a "redistribution of property" dispute. It got the idea from the fact that five passengers on the bus were employees of the country's second largest company, Sheriff, on their way to work, and that the firm is a bidder in a round of privatizations.

Neither theory appears as yet to have been proven. Law enforcement considers the bomb to have detonated prematurely, and that the intended target was not the minibus or its passengers.

The explosion occured when the minibus stopped at a red light at about 07:30 in the morning on one of the cross-roads of Tiraspol. Next to the minibus, passengers of a trolley bus were also injured by the blast although none of them died.

Pridnestrovie helps victims financially

The government of Pridnestrovie has issued a grant of 20,000 PMR Rubles (approximately $2,400) to the families of each of the fatal victims of the bombing, including the family of the man now identified as the bomber. Financial help will be also granted to all of those injured. Saturday was declared a day of mourning in Pridnestrovie, with cinemas closed and weddings cancelled.

On the other side of the border, Moldova did not offer any financial assistance to families of the dead or injured, nor did it declare a day of mourning.

Relations between the two states have been tense since 1990 when Pridnestrovie declared its independence in the time of dissolution of the Soviet Union. One year later, Moldova itself declared independence. Although Moldova recognized its own right to secede from the Soviet Union, it never recognized the same right for Pridnestrovie. After 16 years of de facto independence for Pridnestrovie, Moldova still maintains a territorial claim on its territory.