Odesa court sends military to prison for high treason

The Kyiv District Court of Odesa sentenced a current and a former serviceman to 15 years in prison with confiscation of property for treason.

This was reported by the Court Reporter publication with reference to the court's verdict.

According to the case file, in October 2022, an officer of the Federal Security Service of the Russian Federation in Bryansk Oblast recruited a man who had just been mobilized into the Armed Forces of Ukraine. The latter, in turn, recruited his friend. This is a former military man who used to live in Kharkiv, but after his house was bombed, he moved to Podilsk (formerly Kotovsk), Odesa region.

Later, the serviceman sent his friend the geo-position of his military unit, the location of the ammunition depot in the Donetsk region, etc. His friend sent this information via WhatsApp to a representative of the Russian Federation. On January 30, 2023, the traitor serviceman was detained in Donetsk region, and his friend in Odesa region.

As a result of covert investigative actions, SBU officers removed correspondence from the cell phone number of a person believed to be an FSB officer. The case file also contains recordings of the accused's telephone conversations about the war and disagreement with the leadership of the state of Ukraine.

But the men did not admit their guilt in court. The traitor from the Armed Forces of Ukraine said that his unit was constantly moving around Kharkiv and Donetsk regions. For ten days there was no communication, and he sent his friend the coordinates of his location so that he could inform his family.

The other defendant denied that he had sent information to Russia and said that the printouts from his cell phone were not true. Earlier on the day of his detention, the man confirmed under video recording that it was his phone. A chat with his fellow soldier was found in the cell phone. In the correspondence, there were hints of the unification of the former Soviet Union. When questioned by the investigator, the suspect explained that his friend had sent him passwords for military passes and videos, and confirmed that he had sent this information to the Russians.

The defense lawyers argued that the SBU had not proved that the WhatsApp account to which the information was allegedly sent belonged to an employee of the FSB department in the Belgorod region of Russia. But the court did not take such arguments into account. During the war with Russia, it is impossible to identify this person. However, the content of the correspondence indicates that the interlocutor was a representative of the special services of the aggressor state.

Кирило Бойко