Kharkiv "saboteurs" remanded in custody on terror plot inquiry
The Kyivsky District Court of Kharkiv has ordered the detention of members of a group which the Ukrainian Security Service (SBU) believes had been planning to stage a terrorist attack on the eve of Independence Day, a spokesperson for the Kharkiv Region Prosecutor's Office said on Monday.
A 39-year-old local resident, who was arrested shortly after planting an explosive device on the stretch of railway line between Kharkiv and Kupyansk, has been remanded in custody without bail on suspicion of an attempted act of sabotage, the spokesperson said.
His 30-year-old acquaintance, who is a border officer, is charged with abetting him to carry out the attack. He too will remain in custody without a possibility to apply for bail.
The third member of the group is suspected of storing ammunition, explosive substances and explosive devices without permission, and has been remanded in custody with the possibility of being released on an UAH 100,000 hryvni bail.
It was reported that the group leader was arrested on August 12, 2015, after planting an explosive device under rail tracks. Officers who conducted searches at the houses of the sabotage group members recovered two grenades for an under-barrel launcher, 5.45 millimeter cartridges, a plan and maps of the region.
"The group was gathering information about our military servicemen, critical infrastructure and information about the location of Ukrainian units," SBU spokeswoman Olena Hytlianska said at a briefing in Kyiv last Friday.
