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Ukrainian SBU Arrests Two Russian Agents Mapping Kyiv’s Key Infrastructure
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The Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) has detained two agents of Russia’s military intelligence (GRU) involved in planning airstrikes targeting vital infrastructure in Kyiv and its surrounding areas.
As reported by SBU on December 11, the suspects are accused of gathering intelligence for Russian missile and drone attacks on the Ukrainian capital’s thermal and hydroelectric power plants, key targets in Moscow’s ongoing campaign against Ukraine’s energy sector.
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The two men, aged 19 and 21, were identified as unemployed residents from Odesa and Khmelnytsky regions. According to SBU, they were recruited by the GRU in the fall of 2025 after seeking “easy earnings” through Telegram channels.
Once recruited, the men were deployed to Kyiv and nearby regions, where they conducted reconnaissance missions, identifying and documenting the coordinates of energy facilities and assessing their condition after Russian bombardments.
During their surveillance, the suspects photographed and marked locations of key checkpoints along local roads on Google Maps, further aiding the enemy’s targeting efforts. Cyber specialists from the SBU apprehended the agents in Kyiv while they were gathering intelligence for new strikes on Ukraine’s infrastructure.
Searches of the suspects’ devices revealed smartphones containing encrypted messages and communications with their GRU handler, who had directed their operations. Both men have been placed under arrest without the possibility of bail and now face charges that carry life imprisonment, along with asset confiscation.
Earlier, Ukraine's Security Service uncovered and confiscated a foreign vessel linked to Russia's “shadow fleet” that was illicitly transporting Ukrainian agricultural goods from the occupied Crimea.
The investigation revealed that the vessel's owner, who was sanctioned by Ukraine’s National Security and Defense Council, had frequently altered the ship's name and its listed beneficiaries from third-party countries to evade sanctions.
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