Ukraine’s domestic intelligence agency, the Security Service (SBU), says it uncovered a network of five females who are suspected of being Russian agents in the southern port city of Mykolayiv.
SBU spokesperson Artem Dekhtyarenko said on May 17 that the group was formed under the leadership of a Russian general who is part of the invading force in Ukraine.
The suspected agent network was supposed to provide a penetration route into Mykolayiv “for enemy and reconnaissance groups.”
All five women are “local residents” of the city located 601 kilometers south of Kyiv, the nation’s capital.
They are charged with high treason and if found guilty face 12 to 15 years in prison.
The “agents also collected information on the social and political situation in the region and outcome of enemy missile strikes across Mykolayiv,” Dekhtyarenko said.
To gather intelligence, the group allegedly befriended Ukrainian military servicemen in the area “during friendly conversations.”
After the “successful” performance of assigned tasks, the SBU said, some agents were to be evacuated to Russian-occupied Crimea, while others were promised leading positions should the Mykolayiv region be occupied.
