Russian agent from occupied Crimea detained in Kyiv for collecting intelligence

The SBU reported the information on the official website.

SBU servicemen detained a Russian Federal Security Service (FSB) agent who arrived in Kyiv from the temporarily occupied Crimea a month before the start of the full-scale invasion.

"Under the guise of visiting relatives, he was in "sleep mode" for some time, and when he received an order to act, he was detained by the SBU," the SBU report reads.

The perpetrator followed FSB instructions, in particular, collected intelligence on the presence and movement of the Armed Forces of Ukraine in the Kyiv region.

"He was supposed to pass the information he received to the aggressor state for planning and preparing sabotage against Ukrainian military units and law enforcement agencies," the SBU continues

The investigation revealed that the man used to serve in a now disbanded police agency. He remained in Sevastopol, Crimea, after he was fired in 2014. Thus, he became a henchman of the Russian occupation authorities, later being appointed to the local "police department of the Russian Federation".

"Thus, he came to the attention of the FSB, which decided to recruit him to carry out intelligence and subversive activities against Ukraine," the Ukrainian security service emphasizes.

Investigators established that the agent underwent" operational and combat training at the base of training centers of the Russian special services", and then waited for a trip to the territory controlled by Ukraine.

The SBU informs: the man used his acquaintances among ex-law enforcement officers and representatives of criminal circles to create a network of informants for Russian forces. However, the SBU identified and detained the agent.

At the perpetrator’s temporary base in Kyiv, law enforcement officers found:

• internal passport of a citizen of the Russian Federation and a Russian passport for traveling abroad;

• a mobile phone with evidence of conspiratorial correspondence with the FSB through an anonymous Telegram channel;

• materials confirming the completion of a "special course" on the territory of the temporarily occupied Crimea.

The man was notified of suspicion of treason (Part 1 of Article 111 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine). The court ruled detention to be the preventive measure.