Saturday, December 21, 2024 - A military court in Rostov-on-Don, Russia, has sentenced an unnamed resident of Ukraine’s Lugansk region to 16 years in prison on charges of “high treason.” The Russian FSB security service alleged the individual had provided information about the Russian armed forces to Ukraine’s security services. The man was also convicted of aiding terrorist activities and illegally handling and transporting explosives.
The court ordered the sentence to be served in a
high-security penal colony, with the verdict accompanied by the release of an
FSB video showing his arrest. In the footage, officers stopped a car, dragged
the suspect to the ground, handcuffed him, and escorted him to local FSB
headquarters. The man, whose face was blurred, claimed he had been recruited by
Ukraine’s SBU security service in 2016.
The sentencing aligns with Russia’s pattern of imposing
severe penalties on individuals accused of collaborating with Ukraine or
opposing Kremlin policies. President Vladimir Putin has urged security agencies
to adopt stringent anti-terror measures, emphasizing the need to “identify
spies and traitors” and disrupt foreign intelligence operations.
Meanwhile, independent media reported a related incident in
the Rostov region, where activist Roman Shved, a 39-year-old anarchist,
reportedly died by suicide in a detention center hours after being sentenced to
16 years in prison. Shved had been convicted of arson against a government
building following Russia’s 2022 military mobilization.
Russia has prosecuted thousands of citizens for opposing its
Ukraine offensive, now approaching its third year. Activists and detainees
continue to face heavy scrutiny and penalties under the Kremlin’s intensifying
security measures.
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