A Russian man stands treason trial on charges he filmed military equipment for Ukraine

MOSCOW (AP) — A Russian man faced trial on Thursday on charges of high treason for a video he had allegedly sent to Ukraine's security services, the latest in a growing series of espionage cases amid the fighting in Ukraine.

The Volgograd District Court began hearing a new case against Nikita Zhuravel, who is currently serving a 3.5-year sentence for publicly burning a Quran in front of a mosque.

The new charges against Zhuravel are based on allegations that he filmed a trainload of military equipment and warplanes in 2023 and sent the video to a representative of Ukraine’s security agency. He could be sentenced for life if convicted.

Rights activists say Zhuravel is a political prisoner and condemned violence against him in custody.

While in pretrial custody before his first sentence, Zhuravel was beaten by the 15-year-old son of Ramzan Kadyrov, the Kremlin-appointed strongman leader of the mostly Muslim region of Chechnya. The elder Kadyrov posted the video on social media and praised his son, causing public outrage. He later awarded his son with the medal of “Hero of the Republic of Chechnya.”

Federal authorities have refrained from any criticism of the Chechen strongman.

Treason and espionage cases have skyrocketed after Russian President Vladimir Putin sent troops into Ukraine in February 2022. They have targeted a wide range of suspects from Kremlin critics and independent journalists to veteran scientists, drawing criticism from rights groups.

The legal definition of treason has been expanded to include providing vaguely defined “assistance” to foreign countries or organizations, effectively exposing to prosecution anyone in contact with foreigners.