SBU exposes military man on spying on trains to Kherson and Mykolaiv

The SBU detained a serviceman who was in the AFU for high treason. He was passing data on the movement of railway transport and cargo in the direction of Kherson and Mykolaiv to Russian special services.

This is evidenced by the decision of the Central District Court of Mykolaiv.

The Security Service of Ukraine is conducting a pre-trial investigation in a criminal proceeding on the grounds of high treason. According to the investigation, after the introduction of martial law in Ukraine, that is, from February 24, 2022, the man provided a representative of the aggressor country with information on the movement of railway transport and cargo in the direction of Kherson and Mykolaiv via the Telegram messenger.

The investigation revealed that the man received tasks and instructions from a representative of the Russian special service. He agreed to carry out the task, realizing that it could result in strikes on railroad transport, damage to infrastructure and loss of life.

In early March 2026, the suspect, near the Novopetrivka railway station, installed a hidden online camera on a tree trunk near the railway tracks. The camera had a SIM card of the Vodafone mobile operator and a 64 GB memory card and provided remote access to a Russian representative to monitor the movement of trains and cargo.

In early March, in the evening, the suspect was detained by law enforcement officers and notified of being suspected of treason.

At the court hearing, the suspect admitted that he had committed the actions he was charged with. He explained that he was a military serviceman, but left his place of service without permission. To earn money, he began to communicate with a representative of the Russian Federation and, on his instructions, bought cameras that he installed near the railroad tracks to monitor the movement of freight trains.

His defense lawyer requested that the suspect be placed under round-the-clock house arrest. The court imposed a pre-trial restraint in the form of detention until May 3, 2026 inclusive.

The court also extended the arrest of the former dispatcher of the humanitarian headquarters of the Novokakhovka MVA on charges of treason. He is suspected of passing intelligence on the location of the Ukrainian military to the enemy.

Анна Бальчінос