SSU Detains Russian FSB Agent Hunting Ukrainian Special Forces

Ukraine’s military counterintelligence, part of the Security Service of Ukraine (SSU), has foiled an FSB operation and detained a Russian spy in Rivne who was targeting members of the Special Operations Forces (SOF).

According to the SSU’s official statement, the agent was attempting to track Ukrainian special forces personnel, gather intelligence on the partisan underground movement, and pass this information to Russia. He now faces up to 15 years in prison.

The suspect is a 28-year-old Russian citizen who served in Russian military intelligence in 2018–2019. He arrived in Ukraine in 2021, claiming he was visiting relatives, and had since been posing as an ordinary resident of Russia’s Krasnoyarsk region.

Investigators say the spy systematically collected contact details of Ukrainian service members to gain their trust and infiltrate an SOF unit. He sought personal data on soldiers and information about individuals secretly assisting with the planning of special operations. The gathered intelligence was intended to be sent to his handlers through secure electronic communication channels.

Security officers closely tracked the agent’s activities and caught him in the act during the final stage of the special operation. A Russian army uniform and documents from the aggressor state were found in his residence. The court has placed the suspect in pretrial detention without the possibility of bail. Investigators have formally charged him with espionage.

Militarnyi previously reported that the SSU had detained three Russian FSB agents who were preparing to assassinate Ukrainian servicemen in Odesa by detonating improvised explosive devices.