Russian engineer at a strategic company accused of passing on “military and technical” information of Ukraine, was sentenced to 16 years in prison in the Urals for “treason”, France Press reported, citing the local court.
Thirty-two-year-old Danil Mukhametov, an engineer at Uralvagonzavod, one of Russia's largest tank manufacturers, based in Nizhny Tagil, was arrested in 2023 by Russia's Federal Security Service (FSB) together with with his wife Victoria, it is clear from a statement of the Sverdlovsk District Court.
The accused of “handing over military and technical information to the Ukrainian special services” Mukhametov “partially admitted his guilt”, announced the court, which sentenced him to “16 years of imprisonment in a strict prison camp”.
Viktoria Mukhametova, who also worked at “Uralvagonzavod”, was sentenced to 12.5 years in prison in October on the same charge, the Russian agency RIA reported.
Since the beginning of the Russian offensive in Ukraine in February 2022, trials in Russia for treason, terrorism and espionage, which always result in heavy sentences, have increased. In the country, thousands of people are subjected to punishments, threats and imprisonment because of their opposition to the war in Ukraine, notes AFP.