Based on the evidence collected by the Security Service, an agent of russian military intelligence (‘the GRU’) has been sentenced to 15 years in prison with confiscation of property. The SSU exposed him in May 2025 for setting fire to a railway relay cabinet in Kyiv.

The suspect was caught ‘red-handed’ as he set fire to the technical equipment and attempted to flee the scene of the crime.

As the investigation revealed, russia’s order was carried out by a conscript recruited by the enemy, who had deserted his military unit in the Odesa region and travelled to Kyiv.

Hiding in the capital, he settled in a rented apartment and began looking for ‘easy money’ on specialised Telegram channels.

Eventually, a GRU employee contacted him via the messenger. The deserter agreed to set fire to the facilities of the Kyiv branch of Ukrainian railways.

His first task was to destroy a relay cabinet of a signaling system that regulates train traffic near one of the freight stations.

The agent broke open the electrical panel door and set the technical equipment on fire using a flammable mixture. He filmed the fire on his phone camera for a report to his handler.

The asset was supposed to continue a series of arson attacks on railway infrastructure facilities. However, the Security Service thwarted the enemy’s plan and detained the arsonist during his first act of sabotage.

A mobile phone containing evidence of his work for the enemy and the equipment he used for the arson were seized during the search.

Based on the SSU’s investigation, the court found the accused guilty under Article 113.2 of the CCU (sabotage, committed under martial law).

The investigation was conducted by the SSU Office in Kyiv and the Kyiv region in cooperation with the National Police, under the procedural supervision of the Specialised Defence Prosecutor’s Office in the Central Region.