UKRAINE, KHARKIV, Mar 20 — The Security Service of Ukraine has served a 31-year-old resident of the Kharkiv Oblast with a notice of suspicion of high treason for directing Russian airstrikes at the regional center, reported Vladyslav Abdula, a spokesman for the Security Service of Ukraine in the Kharkiv Oblast.

According to law enforcement officials, at the beginning of the Russian full-scale invasion, the man collected data on the location and movement of Ukrainian troops defending Kharkiv.

“Most of all, he was interested in the locations of firing positions of the Ukrainian air defence systems. Such information was precious to the occupiers. It allowed Russian bombers to strike the city bypassing air defenses,” reported Vladyslav Abdula.

According to the investigation, the suspect was recruited by Russian military intelligence before the full-scale invasion of Ukraine. His close relative, one of the commanders of the Russian sabotage and reconnaissance unit “Irbis,” known by the call sign “Bagira,” was the man’s liaison. “Bagira” passed information to the Russian intelligence officer to plan combat operations on the eastern front.

The SBU noted that the suspect had stopped communicating with Russian intelligence before the de-occupation of part of the Kharkiv Oblast and rarely left his house on the city’s outskirts. He was detained in his apartment.

SBU served the man a notice of suspicion of high treason under Part 1 Article 111 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine. He faces 15 years in prison with confiscation of property.

As Vladyslav Abdula reported, the Security Service of Ukraine detained a resident of Kharkiv suspected of working for Russian special services. 

According to the investigation, the woman checked the coordinates of missile targets sent by Russian representatives. She took photos of the objects during the exploration and marked them on Google Maps. The suspect then sent the information via messenger. She faces life imprisonment.

Read more