The SSU has detained Russian agents who were ‘hunting’ Ukrainian politicians and military commanders
The Military Counter-Intelligence Directorate of the Security Service of Ukraine has announced the dismantling of an FSB spy network operating in the Kyiv and Odesa regions.
In Kyiv, law enforcement officers detained one of the agents who, according to the investigation, had been kept on ‘standby’ by the Russian special services for 12 years.
The SSU claims that the suspect is an IT specialist from Mykolaiv, recruited by the Russian special services in 2014. According to the investigation, since February 2026 he had been gathering coordinates for potential missile strikes on Kyiv, specifically targeting the residence of the head of the State Emergency Service of Ukraine.
According to the SSU, the agent was recently tasked with moving to Kyiv to gather information on public figures against whom Russia was allegedly planning sabotage and terrorist attacks.
According to the investigation, potential targets included politicians and representatives of Ukraine’s security and defence command.
The SSU stated that the agent tracked the residential addresses and travel routes of individuals of interest to the Russian special services, after which he passed this data to his handler in Moscow.
To gather information, the man made new acquaintances and used them without revealing his true purpose. According to law enforcement, he also used the provision of computer system administration and technical support services as a cover.
Later, according to the SSU, another IT specialist from Odesa was recruited into the operation. Together, according to the investigation, they created a network of informants who passed on data regarding the deployment of Ukrainian military personnel.
At the same time as the suspect was detained in Kyiv, law enforcement officers arrested his accomplice in Odesa.
During searches of the suspects’ premises, smartphones containing evidence of collaboration with the FSB were seized, the SSU reported.
Investigators informed the detainees that they were suspected of an offence under Part 2 of Article 111 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine — treason committed under martial law.
The suspects are in custody. They face life imprisonment with confiscation of property.
