Four Ukrainian citizens have been detained in Vienna on suspicion of espionage, two of whom are alleged Ukrainian military intelligence officers. The other two are journalists from the Ukrainian publication “Ukrainska Pravda“, who were later released after the suspicions against them were not confirmed. This was announced by Austrian Interior Minister Gerhard Karner on October 9.
The two alleged spies were arrested on October 5 and remain in pre-trial detention until at least October 21. According to the Austrian judicial authorities, the measure was imposed due to the risk of absconding, obstructing the investigation and committing crimes.
The two men deny the charges against them.
The investigation is being led by the Austrian Directorate for State Security and Intelligence (DSN). Alleged secret intelligence activity to the detriment of Austria is being investigated, which constitutes a crime under Article 256 of the Austrian Penal Code.
The authorities did not disclose how long the detainees had been in the country and how they came into the sights of the security services.
Two investigative journalists were also detained
The case gained additional public attention after on October 8, the Austrian authorities also detained the head of the investigative journalism department of “Ukrainska Pravda“ Mikhail Tkach and cameraman Yaroslav Bondarenko.
The two arrived in Vienna on an editorial assignment related to the search for the former Prosecutor General of Ukraine Ruslan Kravchenko.
The editor-in-chief of the publication Sevgil Musaeva defines the detention as unlawful and demands that the Austrian authorities provide explanations for the actions of the law enforcement agencies.
According to Tkach, he and his colleague were stopped while traveling between two filming locations. When their car stopped at a traffic light, seven armed men in masks approached him.
According to the journalist's account, they broke the car's windows, dragged the two men out onto the road, and tied their hands behind their backs.
Tkach claims that he repeatedly introduced himself as a journalist, but one of the captors nevertheless kneed him in the neck. Since the armed men did not identify themselves, for the first 30-40 minutes he believed he had been kidnapped.
The journalist was released at around 4 a.m. on October 9 after approximately 12 hours of detention.
The cameraman, Yaroslav Bondarenko, was injured during the operation and was taken to hospital. He was subsequently released.
The spokeswoman for the Vienna prosecutor's office, Nina Busek, explained that the suspicions against the two journalists arose in the framework of another investigation, but were not confirmed.
Investigation against the former Prosecutor General of Ukraine
The journalists' presence in Vienna is connected with an investigation into the whereabouts of the former Ukrainian Prosecutor General Ruslan Kravchenko.
In September, the Ukrainian anti-corruption authorities NABU and the Specialized Anti-Corruption Prosecutor's Office conducted Operation “Cartagena“, aimed at an alleged criminal scheme involving employees of the Prosecutor General's Office.
According to investigators, representatives of the institution received bribes from fraudulent call centers and participated in the legalization of illegally acquired funds.
Kravchenko denied any involvement in the alleged scheme. On September 7, he resigned, describing his decision as political. On September 14, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky removed him from office, and the next day, parliament supported his dismissal.
The former Prosecutor General subsequently left Ukraine.
According to information from “Ukrainska Pravda“, citing law enforcement sources, Kravchenko left the country on the night of September 14 in a company car.
He himself explained his trip with the intention of informing international partners about the state of Ukrainian anti-corruption institutions.