Russians sentence captured journalist from Melitopol to 15 years in prison

An occupation “court” has sentenced Melitopol journalist Iryna Levchenko to 15 years in prison. The Russians accused her of “espionage” for Ukraine. The woman has been in Russian captivity for more than three years after she was kidnapped in occupied Melitopol.

This was reported by the Institute of Mass Information, citing information from the occupation “Zaporizhzhia Regional Court.” The verdict was published on September 4 on the website of the illegal court and on its Telegram channel.

The Russians claim that after the start of the full-scale invasion, Levchenko remained in occupied Melitopol and did not renounce her Ukrainian citizenship.

According to the occupiers, she allegedly contacted a resident of the territory controlled by Ukraine via Telegram and agreed to provide Ukrainian special services with information about the occupation’s administrative buildings, their employees, as well as the movement of Russian military personnel, equipment, and weapons.

The occupation “court” stated that in February 2023, the journalist allegedly passed on data about Russian ministries and departments, including law enforcement agencies, along with addresses and lists of employees.

“Transferring the said information to the Ukrainian side could have led to the infliction of fire damage on the location of these strategic objects,” the occupation “court” said in a statement.

The woman was found guilty under Article 276 of the Russian Criminal Code on “espionage” and sentenced to 15 years in prison. The judge’s name is not being released, and his face is blurred in the released video.

Iryna Levchenko and her husband Oleksandr disappeared in May 2023 in occupied Melitopol. The Russians detained the couple right on the street, then held them in basements and later separated them.

Oleksandr Levchenko was released in August 2024. Iryna remained in captivity: she was transported between places of detention in the occupied territories and in Russia. In June 2026, it became known that the journalist was transferred from the Simferopol pre-trial detention center to the Krasnodar pre-trial detention center.

According to the Institute of Mass Information, Levchenko has been working in journalism since 1981. She was a correspondent for local, regional, and national publications. The journalist is included in the list of civilian media workers held in Russian captivity.

As a reminder, the Southern District Military Court of the Russian Federation in Rostov-on-Don sentenced Ukrainian prisoner of war Roman Klyukin to 22 years in prison . He was accused of “espionage” and participation in the activities of a “terrorist organization.”

As reported, Olga Chernyavska, a resident of temporarily occupied Tokmak, Zaporizhia region, was sentenced to 13 years in prison on charges of “espionage.”

Also follow “Pryamim” on Facebook , X , Telegram , and Instagram.