30 October 2025 , 10:10
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A British national accused of spying for Russia in Ukraine and preparing to carry out terrorist attacks has been arrested, Ukrainian prosecutors said on Wednesday.
Ukrainian officials alleged that the man, who they did not name, collaborated with Russia’s special services and agreed to sell military information in exchange for money.
The man, who has been detained in Kyiv at his “temporary residence”, was accused of “unauthorised dissemination of information about the defence forces in conditions of martial law”.
The UK Foreign Office has confirmed that it is aware of the reports and is “in close contact with the Ukrainian authorities”. Ukraine’s security service said the man was also “preparing to carry out terrorist attacks”.
The Briton appeared in a Ukrainian court this week and was detained without bail.
This is the first such case of a British national being accused of spying charges on Ukrainian soil.
Ukrainian officials said he initially travelled to Ukraine in 2024 to work as a military instructor, but then posted on pro-Russia forums online saying he was willing to sell information. He was then allegedly contacted by Russia’s secret police, the FSB.
“The occupiers provided him with instructions for making an improvised explosive device. They also sent him the coordinates of a weapons cache, from which he retrieved a pistol with two loaded magazines,” the Security Service of Ukraine said in a statement, referring to Russia.
He has “professional skills in fire and tactical training” and had advertised his willingness to spy on “various pro-Kremlin internet groups”, the prosecutors said.
The Ukrainian prosecutor’s office said the British national stopped working as an instructor in September 2024 and moved to Ukraine’s port city of Odesa. He “established contact with a representative of the Russian special service and agreed to provide military information for money”, the statement added.
They said they have evidence showing that the British man transmitted sensitive military information to Russia in May 2025, including the location of Ukrainian units, photographs of training areas and information about military personnel that could lead to their identification.
He received $6,000 (£4,541) for one “task”, the prosecutors said in a statement. A pre-trial investigation “is being conducted by the investigators of the Security Service of Ukraine with operational support from counter-intelligence units”.
World Affairs Correspondent