In Melitopol, the occupying forces sentenced a woman to prison for spying for Ukraine
The so-called “Zaporizhzhia Regional Court,” established by the Russian occupation authorities, sentenced a resident of Melitopol to 13 years in a penal colony on charges of “espionage.” According to the Russian investigation, the woman allegedly passed information to the Ukrainian side about the locations and movements of Russian troops, weapons, and military equipment in the occupied part of Zaporizhzhia Oblast.
In the occupation court, the woman was referred to only as “Citizen T.” and it was noted that she was born in 1979. The Russian side has not officially disclosed her full name.
At the same time, journalists from “Mediazona” noted that in the database of the project “If There Were No War,” which collects information on Russia’s persecution of Ukrainians, there is only one resident of the Zaporizhzhia region born in 1979 against whom a “spying” case was filed. That person is Inna Tkachenko.
Furthermore, as the journalists discovered, the surname “Tkachenko” appears in the caption of a photograph of the convicted woman published on the website of the court established by the occupiers. Therefore, it is likely that the convicted woman is indeed Inna Tkachenko.
The Russian side refers to the woman as a “supporter of pro-Ukrainian ideology.” She is also accused of opposing the war and allegedly “harboring hostility” toward the Russian authorities.
According to the Russian investigation, the Melitopol resident saw a call on one of the “pro-Ukrainian channels” to pass on information about the locations and movements of Russian troops in the occupied territory of Zaporizhzhia Oblast.
The Russians claim that from May to August 2023, she passed on information to the Ukrainian side regarding the deployment and movements of Russian military personnel, as well as Russian weapons and military equipment, in Melitopol and surrounding settlements.
The occupation court found the woman guilty of transmitting information which, according to the Russian side, could have been used “against the security” of the Russian Federation.
As a result, she was sentenced to 13 years in a general-regime penal colony.
Melitopol has been under Russian occupation since 2022. Ukraine does not recognize the authorities and courts established by Russia in the temporarily occupied territories, and Melitopol, in accordance with internationally recognized borders, remains part of Ukraine.
At the same time, the charges and circumstances of the case presented are the version of the Russian occupying authorities, which has not been independently verified.
This was reported during a hearing at the occupation court.
Earlier, the Russian occupying authorities sentenced a 24-year-old resident of the Donetsk region to 14 years in a maximum-security prison for allegedly passing information to Ukrainian intelligence about the location of Russian troops in the Donetsk region.
Previously, two residents of the Kramatorsk district were found guilty of treason and sentenced to 15 years in prison with confiscation of property.
The Southern District Military Court in Rostov-on-Don sentenced Andriy Gulak, a 61-year-old resident of the Donetsk region, to 5 years and 4 months in prison. The Russian side accused the man of allegedly participating in a terrorist group due to his service in the “Azov” regiment.
