12 years in prison: A court has sentenced a Kharkiv resident to 12 years in prison for manufacturing explosives at the request of the Russian Federation

This was reported by the Kharkiv Regional Prosecutor's Office.

According to the investigation, in January 2025, the woman began communicating with a representative of the Russian Federation via Telegram and was tasked with manufacturing explosives.

Following her handler’s instructions, she purchased the necessary components and assembled an improvised explosive device (IED), equipping it with a detonator and metal nuts to increase its destructive power.

The device was equipped with two cell phones. One was used for remote detonation after a call, and the other for video surveillance and monitoring the package’s movement.

The woman handed the bag containing the explosive device to a 15-year-old teenager she had recruited. He was supposed to deliver the package to a soldier, posing as a courier. In the Chuhuiv district, the device was detonated during the handoff. Both died at the scene from shrapnel wounds and blast injuries.

Later, the Kharkiv woman began assembling another device, but on February 19, 2025, she was arrested. During a search, remnants of chemical substances and other components were seized.

The defendant partially admitted guilt but did not testify. She was convicted under the following articles: aiding and abetting a terrorist act resulting in loss of life (Part 5 of Article 27, Part 3 of Article 258 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine), the illegal manufacture of an explosive device (Part 2 of Article 263-1 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine), and its storage and transfer (Part 1 of Article 263 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine).

The court sentenced her to 12 years in prison.

As a reminder, a 24-year-old woman from Kyiv was sentenced to 9 years in prison with confiscation of property for planting explosives in a soldier’s car in Obolon in January of this year. The defendant agreed to carry out the instructions of her handler from Russia in exchange for $1,500.