Russia sentences man to jail for spying for Ukraine

MOSCOW: A Russian court said on Thursday it has sentenced a man to 12 years in prison for allegedly spying for Ukraine, the latest in a spate of treason cases.
Russian Viktor Shur was on Wednesday found guilty by a regional court in Bryansk, on the border with Ukraine, of collecting secret information about defence facilities for the Ukrainian border service, the court said in a statement.
The court said Shur was detained by Russia’s FSB intelligence service after crossing back into Russia in December 2014 and had confessed to treason during the trial.
Shur’s trial was classified as secret and few other details of the case have emerged. The Bryansk court said the sentence had not yet entered into force pending an appeal. Russian rights activist and journalist Zoya Svetova — who met with Shur when he was detained in Moscow — told AFP that he is aged around 60, had a residence permit in Ukraine and worked in architecture and antiques prior to his arrest.