Court in Russian-occupied Luhansk imprisons local Ukrainian man for treason, attributing his actions to ‘a misguided sense of patriotism’

The Supreme Court of the self-proclaimed Luhansk People’s Republic has sentenced a man from the town of Belokurakino to 17 years in prison for treason. He was reportedly convicted of passing military information to Ukrainian security officials. According to the court’s press service, he acted “out of a misguided sense of patriotism” by aiding Ukraine against Russian occupation forces. Journalists at Mediazona were among the first to report the story.

The case highlights how Russian and Russian-backed authorities have intensified their crackdown on alleged collaborators and informants, imposing stiff penalties on anyone accused of aiding Ukraine’s war effort. Earlier this month, a Tula resident was sentenced to 18 years for treason, allegedly for sharing information about Russian air defense assets and fuel depots over a messaging app with Ukrainian intelligence.

Investigators say the man from Belokurakino offered a member of the National Guard a cash reward for information about the location of a fuel depot on Russian-controlled Luhansk territory. The officer refused and reported the offer to Russian authorities. Similar convictions for passing sensitive information to Ukraine have grown more frequent since Moscow’s full-scale invasion in February 2022.