A Ukrainian who switched sides to Russia in the war and claimed "you won't stop me" has been assassinated alongside his wife.
Oleksiy Kovalyov, 33, was shot dead along with his 38-year-old wife who was stabbed and later passed away in hospital.
In April, Kovalyov had switched sides to ally himself with the Vladimir Putin regime when they invaded his home country in February this year, causing thousands of deaths and left large parts of major cities completely destroyed.
Ukrainian official Serhiy Khlan said: "Former MP and traitor Oleksiy Kovalyov has been killed."
He was eventually appointed the Deputy Head of Agriculture in the important grain region, a significant role considering Ukraine's reputation as the "breadbasket of the world".
The former MP with the ruling Servant of the People party - the same as Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky - in Kyiv was found and killed by saboteurs located in the Kherson region, currently occupied by Russia but facing a Ukrainian counter-offensive.
Ukrainian forces claim they have broken through "in several places" in the attempt to re-take the south of the country, while Zelenksy warned Russian troops to flee if they want to survive.
Journalist Andrei Tsaplienko added on his Telegram channel: "The traitor, collaborator and former People's Deputy Oleksiy Kovalyov was shot dead in his own house.
"The occupiers have begun intensive searches and document checks. Be careful, Ukrainians."
Those identified as traitors to Ukraine continue to be targeted by saboteurs, often identified as those who have taken up administrative positions.
Five are reported to have been killed in the Kherson region, while the mayor of Kherson city, Vladimir Saldo, was left in a coma in Moscow after a suspected poisoning.
The shotgun assassination attempt was not the first made against Kovalyov who was left in hospital in June and blamed the Ukrainian secret service (SBU) for a car bombing.
He said during his recovery: "I am alive, I am healthy. I am aiming to be back to work on Monday. They didn’t scare me and I am aiming to keep working.
"To be with my people and work on my constituency until my duties expire in 2023. To my enemies and to those who planned this sabotage - you won’t stop me."
The Deputy Mayor of Nova Kharkova in the Kherson region was shot and killed at his home earlier this month, while former Internal Security Service Officer Askyar Laishev died when he was killed in a car bombing by members of Ukraine's National Resistance.
He fled to the Luhansk People's Republic as head of intelligence in 2014.
