Ukraine’s Security Service (SBU) has detained a former Russian-backed militant from the so-called “Donetsk People’s Republic” (DNR) who tried to obtain a Ukrainian passport to flee to the European Union, officials said Friday.
Counterintelligence officers captured the man at a hotel in the western city of Kovel, Volyn region, before he could leave the country, the SBU said in a statement.
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Investigators identified the suspect as a Donetsk native who joined the Russian-controlled “Somali” battalion in 2015 and fought against Ukrainian forces during the battle for Donetsk airport. He was later wounded and dismissed from the militant group, according to the SBU.
Authorities said that in late October, the man posed as an internally displaced person and traveled to western Ukraine to apply for a Ukrainian passport that would allow him to cross into the EU.
During the arrest, officers found Russian and “DNR” passports, a military ID, and patches from Russian-backed armed formations in his hotel room.
The SBU said it is also checking whether the man was working with Russian intelligence services and whether his planned escape was part of a broader mission to conduct sabotage in the European Union.
The suspect has been charged with high treason under martial law and participation in illegal armed groups. He remains in custody without bail and faces up to 15 years in prison with confiscation of property.
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The operation was carried out jointly by the SBU’s Volyn regional office, the State Border Guard Service, and the regional prosecutor’s office.
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