Las Vegas Review-Journal (Sunday)

■ A man was arrested Saturday in connection with a supermarke­t bombing in Russia that wounded 18.

- By Vladimir Isachenkov

MOSCOW — A man was arrested Saturday in connection with a St. Petersburg supermarke­t bombing that wounded 18 people, Russia’s main domestic security agency said.

Eight people remain hospitaliz­ed after a device exploded Wednesday in a storage area for customers’ bags. Investigat­ors said the homemade device contained 7 ounces of explosives and was rigged with shrapnel to cause more damage.

The Federal Security Service, or FSB, did not identify the suspect or provide any details about his motive. The agency said in a statement carried by Russian news agencies that he organized and carried out the attack on his own.

The Islamic State group claimed responsibi­lity, but a member of the security committee in the Russia’s parliament cast doubt on the claim, saying it might have been an attempt by IS to gain publicity.

“Now, when the IS defeat in Syria seriously dented its image, it will try to restore its authority and claim responsibi­lity for the attacks by others,” Adalbi Shakhgoshe­v said, according to Russian news wires.

The FSB said that it has handed over the suspect to the Investigat­ive Committee, the nation’s top investigat­ive agency.

The FSB normally deals with terror suspects itself, and the transfer could indicate that the man had other motives.

The Interfax news agency reported that the suspect was a 35-year old local resident who said he was a member of an occult movement and was taking drugs.

Russian law enforcemen­t agencies stopped short of immediatel­y describing the supermarke­t blast as a terror attack, but President Vladimir Putin called it one Thursday. He added that he ordered security agencies to kill terror suspects on the spot if they resist arrest.

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