Authorities reported the 35-year-old, who lives in the Poltava region, had been looking for weak spots in the digital systems of various companies since at least 2018.

Police claimed he gained access to over 5,000 user accounts at one international hosting service that rents out servers for websites and online tools.

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After gaining access to the accounts, he allegedly set up virtual machines and installed mining software to generate cryptocurrency, using the company’s resources without paying for them.

This type of activity, also known as cryptojacking, reportedly resulted in over $4.4 million in losses for the hosting company.

When police searched the suspect’s home, they found laptops, phones, banking cards, and other equipment. Investigators said the devices contained information linked to illegal activity, including email account details, cryptocurrency wallets, and programs used to remotely manage and control mining operations.

The suspect had reportedly been moving between different locations in the Poltava, Odesa, Zaporizhia, and Dnipropetrovsk regions to evade capture.

The man has been charged with unlawfully interfering with electronic communications networks. If found guilty, he could face up to 15 years in prison.

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Per a report from the state-run news agency TASS, the man is a resident of the Oryol Oblast, some 370km to the south of Moscow.

The court heard that the man used crypto to “transfer money” to the Armed Forces of Ukraine on “multiple occasions.”

Another Russian Convicted for Sending Crypto to Ukrainian Army

The unnamed man was charged with treason-related offenses by the Federal Security Service (FSB).

The agency has seemingly intensified its crackdown on Russian supporters of Ukraine’s military forces in recent months.

The FSB likely has access to a range of blockchain analytics tools that let law enforcers monitor individual crypto users.

These tools were first put into operation by the Russian anti-AML body Federal Financial Monitoring Service (Rosfinmonitoring) in early 2023.

Last year, Russian scientists also said they had developed a solution that helps law enforcers fight against “criminals” who make use of Bitcoin (BTC) and Ethereum (ETH).

The court also ordered the man to pay a 500,000 ruble (around $6,000) fine.

TASS reported that a branch of the Western District Military Court heard that the man made “multiple transfers of funds” to “armed formations” in based Ukraine.

The FSB’s press service claimed the man was a member of Telegram channels run by “Ukrainian terrorist organizations.”

Man ‘Made Multiple Crypto Transfers’

The agency said the man “repeatedly transferred funds” in “support” of the groups in 2023 and 2024.” The FSB said:

“The [crypto] was used to buy drones, weapons, ammunition, and tactical equipment for the Ukrainian army. These were all intended to help conduct military operations against soldiers of the Russian Armed Forces.”

The court convicted the man of “high treason” and “assisting a terrorist activity,” both “violations of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation.”

The FSB released scant details about the man, noting only that he was a resident of Oryol, and that he was born in 1976.

However, the FSB released a video “confession” from the man, where he addressed the camera and said:

“I sent […] cryptoassets. […] I knew that I was sending it to [groups] that were fighting on Ukraine’s side.”

FSB’s Crypto Crackdown

The FSB has made scores of similar arrests in recent months. Most recently, it arrested a man in the city of Nizhny Novgorod, accusing him of sending crypto to Ukraine-based militants. The agency said that the militants used the funds to buy drones.

The agency’s arrest report also featured a similar video confession, with the suspect’s face blurred and very little information provided about his identity.

The FSB made another arrest on March 19, swooping on an address in Krasnodar Krai to arrest a man who it says “gave the Ukrainian special services information about a Russian military facility.”

Per a separate TASS report, the man, the agency said, “proactively contacted representatives” of the Ukrainian army.

He then reportedly let them know about the facility, which is located near his home.

The FSB says Ukraine’s military uses Russian crypto donations to buy items including “unmanned thermal imaging sights, aircraft, ammunition, and uniforms.”

Other arrestees, also charged with sending crypto to Ukrainian Armed Forces units and Russian paramilitaries based in Ukraine, include a Moscow-based scientist and a resident of the Russian Far Eastern region of Khabarovsk Krai.

The post Russia Jails Citizen for 15 Years for ‘Sending Crypto to Ukrainian Army’ appeared first on Cryptonews.