The Military Counterintelligence Service of the Security Service of Ukraine, in coordination with the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, has thwarted new attempts by Russia’s FSB to infiltrate Ukraine’s Defense Forces. Following a comprehensive operation, a Russian spy was detained in Rivne as he attempted to track the partisan underground of Ukraine’s Special Operations Forces (SOF).
The suspect is a 28-year-old Russian citizen who served as an intelligence officer in Russia’s military intelligence in 2018–2019.
According to the investigation, he arrived in Rivne in 2021 under the guise of an ordinary resident of Russia’s Krasnoyarsk region with Ukrainian relatives.
He later began collecting contacts of SOF servicemen in an effort to conduct espionage from within the unit. In particular, he sought to obtain personal data of SOF personnel and pass it to Russian forces through prearranged secure electronic communication channels.
He was also interested in information about individuals secretly cooperating with the SOF and involved in the preparation and execution of special operations.
SSU military counterintelligence exposed the spy, documented his subversive activities step by step, and detained him “in the act” at the final stage of the спецoperation.
During a search, officers found Russian military uniform items and documents from the aggressor state in his possession.
SSU investigators have notified the detainee of suspicion under Part 1 of Article 114 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine (espionage).
The suspect is being held in custody without the right to bail. He faces up to 15 years in prison with confiscation of property.
