On 7 November 1990, during a demonstration on Red Square, 35-year-old Alexander Shmonov attempted to assassinate Mikhail Gorbachev. From a distance of 50 meters, the terrorist fired two shots in the direction of the Mausoleum, both unsuccessfully.
As it turned out during the investigation, Shmonov had planned to kill Gorbachev for several years. Six months before the incident in Red Square, he had acquired a 16-caliber hunting rifle, ammunition and a bulletproof vest. He had prepared leaflets that began with the words: ‘Ladies and gentlemen, I ask you to kill the leaders of the USSR.’
He had been putting up the leaflets in Moscow at night, wearing a wig and gloves. The terrorist explained his mistakes made on 7 November by saying that he had been aiming at the victim for a long time and wanted to hit him in the head. Medical examination established Shmonov’s mental insanity. As a result, he was treated in a special closed-type clinic, which he left only in the autumn of 1994. Since then, Shmonov had served as a democrat, journalist, plumber and entrepreneur. In 1999, he tried to run for State Duma deputy. Hovewer, he was not registered as a candidate because of violations committed while collecting signatures.
Igor Dzhokhadze. The criminal chronicle of mankind
Translated by Elizaveta Ovchinnikova
