Former Kharkiv region SBU head detained on suspicion of attempting to seize state power
The former head of the State Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) branch in Kharkiv region has been charged with attempting to seize state power during the war, the Prosecutor General’s Office (PGO) has said.
"According to the investigation, after the start of the full-scale aggression of the Russian Federation, the suspect, while holding a leadership position, committed actions aimed at the violent seizure of state power and the seizure of a building of a state authority," the message on Telegram said on Friday.
The message does not name the person involved, but according to Interfax-Ukraine, it refers to Roman Dudin, a lieutenant colonel of the SBU, who headed the SBU in the Kharkiv region in 2020-2022.
The State Bureau of Investigation reports that the attacker had information about the Russian Armed Forces conducting an offensive operation on the territory of Ukraine on February 24, 2022, and was convinced of its success. The Prosecutor General’s Office notes that, using his official position, he organized illegal actions to remove the head of the Kharkiv Regional State Administration from the exercise of his powers, as well as misinformed subordinates and initiated the dissemination of knowingly false information, which could lead to destabilization of the situation in the front-line region.
"The above-mentioned actions were committed during a special period of martial law and created a real threat to the continuous functioning of state authorities and the defense system of Ukraine," the report notes.
He has been notified of suspicion under Part 2 of Article 15, Part 1 of Article 109 and Article 341 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine. The issue of choosing a preventive measure in the form of detention for the suspect is currently being resolved. If found guilty, he faces up to 10 years of imprisonment with confiscation of property.
Prosecutors of the Prosecutor General’s Office are already supporting the public indictment of the same former law enforcement officer in the Shevchenkivskyi District Court of Kyiv in the case of high treason, willful failure to execute an order, and unauthorized abandonment of the place of service under martial law (Part 2 of Article 111, Part 4 of Article 402, Part 5 of Article 407 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine). According to the State Bureau of Investigation, the defendant has already paid over UAH 4.2 million in bail.