SBU detains Russian informant helping enemy prepare strikes on Mykolaiv rail bridges
As a result of a counter-intelligence raid, the Security Service (SBU) detained a Russian intelligence asset who is believed to have been involved in the preparation of a series of Russian airstrikes targeting strategically important transport arteries across Mykolaiv region in Ukraine’s south.
That’s according to the SBU press service, Ukrinform reports.
"Russian invaders hoped to disrupt the logistics for Ukrainian troops involved in counter-offensive operations," the statement reads.
To fulfill the enemy's task, the suspect was working to identify key railway bridges that are used to deploy manpower and equipment to the southern front.
In order to obtain intelligence, the perpetrator would secret record the routes along which the trains ran carrying military hardware for the Armed Forces of Ukraine.
He forwarded the intelligence via a chat messenger to his Russian handlers in the form of media files with a link to the area and the estimated number of equipment units being shipped.
In addition, the perpetrator monitored and transmitted to the enemy the aftermath of Russian missile strikes on the civilian infrastructure across the region.
SBU operatives promptly exposed the culprit, documented his criminal actions step by step, and detained him at his Mykolaiv home.
The man was an active user of pro-Kremlin Telegram channels, where he repeatedly left anti-Ukrainian comments. It is due to his destructive online activity that he came to the attention of Russian intelligence, which later remotely recruited him for further clandestine cooperation.
During the search, a mobile phone was found in the suspect’s possession, which he used to pass information to his Russian contact.
Based on the evidence collected, SBU detectives pressed charges against the culprit under two articles of the Criminal Code of Ukraine.
The court ruled to remand the perpetrator in custody. An investigation is ongoing to establish all the circumstances of the crime. The suspect faces up to 12 years in prison.
As Ukrinform reported, earlier this month, law enforcers detained a resident of Mykolaiv, who had been gathering and passing on to the Russian relative in Crimea sensitive data on locations and weaponry of the Armed Forces’ units.