Based on evidence gathered by counterintelligence and investigators of the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU), a Russian agent exposed by the SBU in October 2024 for carrying out arson attacks in Odesa region has been sentenced to 10 years in prison with confiscation of property.
"The investigation established that the convicted man is a local unemployed individual recruited by the enemy. He came to the attention of Russian intelligence officers while looking for 'easy' money on Telegram channels. In one such chat, a Russian representative contacted him and offered money for setting fire to administrative buildings and vehicles belonging to Ukrainian soldiers," the SBU press service said.
According to the Prosecutor General's Office, Russian intelligence services instructed the man on how to scout locations and targets, correctly prepare an incendiary mixture, cover his tracks after the arson attacks, and delete correspondence and data.
"The recruit searched for vehicles used by Ukrainian soldiers. In a village in Odesa district, he set fire to a Mitsubishi and filmed it on his phone. He later carried out another arson attack, dousing the entrance door and building of a village community club in Usativ community, Odesa district, with a flammable substance. The video, sent to his handlers, was meant to serve as a news hook for pro-Russian outlets, in order to create a false impression that an 'underground movement' existed in Odesa region," the agency said in a statement on its Telegram channel.
A few weeks later, the enemy published the video of the community center arson on a pro-Russian Telegram channel to create the impression that a "pro-Russian underground" existed in the region.
SBU officers detained the agent shortly after the attack. Searches turned up a mobile phone containing evidence of his subversive activity on behalf of the aggressor state.
Based on materials from the Security Service, the court found the perpetrator guilty under Part 1, Article 114-1 (obstructing the lawful activity of the Armed Forces during a special period), Part 2, Article 194 (intentional destruction or damage of property by arson), and Part 2, Article 258 (an act of terrorism committed by a group of persons acting in prior conspiracy) of the Criminal Code of Ukraine.
At the prosecution's request, the convicted man will remain in custody until the verdict takes legal effect.
He did not plead guilty in court.
