Based on the evidence collected by the SSU, an agent of russia’s FSB, who spied on Ukraine’s Defence Forces in Kharkiv region, has been convicted to imprisonment.

The perpetrator was targeting military pilots, commanders of the AFU’s special forces and officers of the Security Service of Ukraine.

Primarily, he tried to identify sites of temporary deployment and residence of Ukrainian defenders, as well as their routes of movement in private cars.

The enemy agent was also tasked with identifying disguised defence industry enterprises in the oblast.

The occupiers needed the intelligence to prepare sabotage attacks against Ukrainian soldiers and defence plants.

The SSU Counterintelligence detained the agent as a result of a special operation in Kharkiv in March 2023. Due to a prompt response, the SSU prevented acts of sabotage.

According to the investigation, the aggressor’s asset was a local resident, recruited remotely in November 2022 by A.P. Salitsev, an officer of the FSB’s operational group in Belgorod region.

The man came to the occupier’s attention through his brother, a retired russian armed forces serviceman living in russia.

To carry out enemy assignments, the traitor walked the streets of Kharkiv and secretly filmed locations of Ukrainian defenders’ bases and routes using his phone camera.

For secrecy, he used 3 mobile phones and 7 numbers of different operators, as well as a special app to hide messengers on his devices.

During the searches of the suspect’s home, the SSU seized a laptop and mobile phones with evidence of the reconnaissance and sabotage activities.

Following an investigation, the court found the accused guilty under Article 111.2 of the CCU (high treason committed under martial law) and sentenced to 15 years in prison.

The investigation was carried out by the SSU Office in Kharkiv region under the procedural supervision of the regional prosecutor’s office.