(KYIV, UKRAINE) – Ukraine’s Security Service said it had detained a Russian agent suspected of preparing a missile and bomb strike aimed at assassinating the commander of the Ukrainian Armed Forces’ Third Army Corps.
The Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) said its military counterintelligence unit, working with the Commander in Chief of the Armed Forces and the commander of the Unmanned Systems Forces, disrupted Russian attempts to eliminate the senior Ukrainian officer.
According to the SBU, the suspect was detained following pre emptive measures after investigators uncovered a plan to guide a targeted Russian air strike on the location of a Ukrainian general operating in the combat zone.
Investigators said Russian intelligence services recruited a drone operator from another brigade that was carrying out missions in the Kharkiv region. The individual was allegedly tasked with helping Russian forces correct the trajectory of a planned missile and bomb strike.
The investigation found that the suspect attempted to obtain information about the time and place of the general’s arrival at positions held by his unit.
To gather intelligence, the agent reportedly used his access to official information and attempted to discreetly request classified details from fellow servicemen.
At the same time, investigators said the suspect was expected to pass on the location of his brigade’s headquarters and its training centre. Russian forces were reportedly preparing a separate attack on those facilities.
The SBU said its officers detected the suspected Russian agent during the early stage of his espionage activities. Authorities then documented his communications with Russian contacts and took steps to secure the positions of relevant Ukrainian defence units.
The suspect was detained during the final stage of the special operation on the territory of a military garrison. Officers seized a smartphone that investigators say he used to communicate with Russian handlers.
Case materials indicate that Russian intelligence recruited the suspect through his former wife. She reportedly lives in temporarily occupied areas of the Zaporizhzhia region and works in the Russian Federation.
Investigators said the agent attempted to conceal his contact with Russian intelligence by regularly deleting messages from his communications.
The SBU said investigators have formally notified the suspect that he is under investigation under Part 2 of Article 111 of Ukraine’s Criminal Code, which covers high treason committed under martial law.
The suspect remains in custody. If convicted, he faces life imprisonment with confiscation of property.
The operation was conducted under the procedural supervision of the Specialised Prosecutor’s Office responsible for defence matters within the Office of the Prosecutor General.
The Security Service said the case forms part of ongoing counterintelligence efforts to detect Russian infiltration attempts within Ukraine’s armed forces during the war.
