Russia targets minors, unemployed, and addicts for terrorist acts, Ukraine reports

This was stated by the spokesperson for the Security Service of Ukraine, Artem Dekhtiarenko, on Radio Liberty.  

"According to our statistics, 22% of the exposed perpetrators are minors, 55% are unemployed, and 7% have prior criminal records. These people are more susceptible to psychological manipulation because young people cannot fully assess the consequences of their actions, and those with addictions need money at any cost," the spokesperson said.  

According to him, Russians primarily recruit minors, unemployed individuals, and people with various addictions, including drug, alcohol, and gambling addictions, for their missions.  

He also clarified that arson attacks on military vehicles and railway sabotage escalated in May 2024, while recruitment for organizing explosions, including involving minors, started in early 2025.

"The youngest perpetrators of Russian-ordered crimes, whom the Security Service exposed setting fire to relay cabinets of Ukrzaliznytsia, were 13-year-old teenage agents. The oldest was a 52-year-old man who attempted to plant an explosive device in Dnipro city," Dekhtiarenko shared.

• Prosecutors in Ivano-Frankivsk have launched a pre-trial investigation into a terrorist act that led to the death of a person on March 11.