Russia’s Federal Security Service (FSB) reports to have detained a transgender man, “who had changed his gender from female to male”, from the Oryol region over charges of high treason, Russian state news agency TASS reports, citing the FSB public relations centre.
According to the report, the detainee is an LGBT movement activist, volunteer for Russian human rights project OVD-Info, and an administrator of an “anti-Russian information source”. He transferred money to Ukraine’s Armed Forces, the FSB claims.
A representative for OVD-Info told Novaya Gazeta Europe that they don’t know what person the FSB could be referring to.
The man is facing from 12 to 20 years behind bars or a life sentence. The law on life sentences for high treason was signed by Russian President Vladimir Putin on 28 April.
Two more high treason cases were reported later in the day:
- The Vladimir region FSB reported to have initiated a criminal case against a resident of the town of Vyazniki; he is suspected of attempting to cross the border in May 2023 in order to join the Freedom of Russia Legion and take part in the combat on Ukraine’s side. His personal data hasn’t been shared, only the year of birth — 1985. As of now, the suspect has been detained and taken into custody. According to the law enforcement officers, he exchanged emails with the legion representatives on several occasions during the period from March to December 2022.
- The third criminal case was reported an hour later, this time in the Kursk region of Russia. The FSB said to have detained several people on suspicion of “transferring data to Ukraine’s Armed Forces” and preparing to attempt an act of sabotage. The names of the people detained have not been revealed. “The special technical devices and means of communication containing instructions on tasks assigned by Ukraine, supplied by a representative of the Ukrainian Armed Forces, have been seized from the detained,” the statement by the FSB reads.
On 6 July, the FSB reported to have “neutralised” a Russian national, who had been allegedly planning to carry out a terrorist attack on Ukraine’s orders, during arrest. On 5 July, a Ukrainian-born Russian national was arrested at the airport of Yekaterinburg on suspicion of high treason for financing the Ukrainian Armed Forces.
On 26 June, the FSB detained a resident of the Amur region for treason, claiming the man had transferred his own money to Ukraine’s military on over ten occasions. On 21 June, the FSB detained a resident of the Khabarovsk region, claiming the man had used cryptocurrencies to donate money to the Ukrainian military.
