The SBU lured an educator out of Crimea and detained him on charges of militarizing children

The SBU’s military counterintelligence unit lured a former director of an extracurricular institution in Yevpatoria out of occupied Crimea and detained him in the Odesa region. The detainee was notified that he is suspected of collaboration and was taken into custody.

This was reported by the Security Service of Ukraine. 

To arrest the suspect, the Security Service’s military counterintelligence unit carried out a multi-phase special operation.

The SBU noted that the former director of an extracurricular educational institution in Yevpatoria influenced local children with the aim of militarizing them and inciting them to wage war against Ukraine. Under the guise of sports clubs and cultural and artistic events, he involved students of the institution, aged 5 to 18, in compulsory activities of a military-propaganda nature.

According to the SBU, within the walls of the occupied institution, servicemen from Russian armed groups conducted firearms and tactical training sessions with the children. In addition, during speeches at public gatherings, the suspect imposed slogans supporting the Kremlin regime on teenagers and their parents, glorified Russian aggressors, and attempted to “instill” hatred toward Ukraine.

The investigation also revealed that the detainee participated in the deportation of children from the temporarily occupied areas of the Kherson and Zaporizhzhia regions to Russia via Crimea.

The suspect was detained in the Odesa region thanks to testimony provided by one of his former colleagues. Military counterintelligence officers from the Security Service helped the woman leave occupied Crimea.

Currently, SBU officers are investigating the possibility that the occupiers may have “sent” the suspect to the Odesa region to gather information about the deployment locations of the Ukrainian Defense Forces.

Юлія Калабайда