Ukrainians sentenced to 24 and 17 years for alleged 'terrorist' plot against Russian invaders in 2022

Russia’s Southern District Military Court has sentenced Oleh Zavhorodniy and Fedir Tryfonov to huge terms of imprisonment on charges that appeared long after the two Ukrainian civilians were remanded in custody.  That is, at least, curious, especially since the men’s formal arrest came over two months after they were abducted from occupied Ukraine.  While impossible to verify or refute the claims made by the prosecution, such long periods in which people are held, without being officially detained and without any procedural status, are typically used to extract ‘confessions’ through torture.

The Memorial Support for Political Prisoners Project reported five new criminal prosecutions against Ukrainians sent to Russia’s notorious Southern District Military Court in September 2024. These included a formidable number of ‘terrorism’ charges against Zavhorodniy and Tryfonov.  Memorial pointed out that the TASS report from 19 January 2023 had mentioned only that the two Ukrainian civilians were accused of preparing explosives.   

Russia has succeeded in imposing an effective information blockade on occupied territory, with the only information available about the two men from Russian sources.  Kommersant reports that Oleh Zavhorodniy is 32, from Zelenivka and with a seven-year-old child.  Fedir Tryfonov is 48, from Zeleny Yar, and has a 17-year-old. 

The trial at the Southern District Military Court in Rostov was before ‘judge’ Viacheslav Alekseevich Korsakov.  The latter has, either as the single judge, like in this case, or as part of a panel of judges, already taken part in passing huge sentences against Crimean Tatar and other Ukrainian political prisoners. 

The sentences passed on 14 May 2025 were on charges of involvement in a ‘terrorist organization’ under Article 205.4 § 2 of Russia’s criminal codeArticle;  of carrying out, or planning acts of terrorism (Article 205 § 4) and possession, purchase, etc. of explosives and weapons under Articles 223.1 § 3 and 222.1 § 4.  Zavhorodniy was also accuse of undergoing training ‘in terrorist activities’ under Article 205.3.

It was claimed that in February 2022, Oleh Zavhorodniy had joined a so-called ‘terrorist organization’’. This was the month that Russia began its full-scale invasion of Ukraine, although not a word is said about the context of Russia’s war of aggression.  The prosecution could be calling Ukraine’s Territorial Defence ‘a terrorist organization’, Zavhorodniy then, purportedly, underwent training from May to October 2022 in preparing homemade explosive devices and organizing hiding places (for explosives, etc).  The prosecution asserted that in May 2022, at Zahorodniy’s suggestion, Fedir Tryfonov joined this ‘terrorist organization’, with the two men supposedly acting together from then on.

It is, however, Zavhorodniy who is alleged to have, from May to October 2022 “obtained from other members of the terrorist organization’ in occupied Berdiansk and Melitopol explosive devices and substances, as well as other components for making a homemade bomb.  Both men were supposed to have kept such explosives, etc. in their homes, and in a specially organized hiding place.

They later, purportedly, prepared a homemade explosive device which they planned to detonate, using a remote control, when a Russian military column was passing, and intended to record this on a video in order to report back to the heads of their supposed ‘terrorist organization’.

The men were seized on 4 November 2022 between Zelenivka and Berdiansk as they were, allegedly, taking the explosive device to the latter. 

A Russian military column on Ukrainian territory would be a perfectly legitimate target.  In fact, since this is one of the Russian FSB’s countless claims to have ‘thwarted a terrorist attack, there is no certainty that there ever was such a plan.  Scepticism is only heightened by a further Russian claim, reported earlier by the Ukrainian publication Lokator Media.  According to this, the two Ukrainians were also supposed to have planned, but been thwarted from carrying out, an explosion during a mass event – a Russian propaganda youth forum.  This would not be the first time that the invading state’s enforcement bodies, presumably understanding that a  Russian military column which should not be on Ukrainian territory can scarcely warrant ‘terrorism’ charges, have also alleged plans to attack civilian targets.  The only ‘evidence’ invariably comes from ‘confessions’ obtained while the person was held incommunicado.

The sentences were horrific.  Oleh Zavhorodniy was sentenced to 24 years maximum-security [‘harsh-regime’] imprisonment with the first five years in a prison, the worst of Russian penal institutions.  Fedir Tryfonov received a 17-year sentence in the same conditions, with four years in a prison.  ‘Judge’ Korsakov also imposed a 600 thousand rouble fine on each of the men. 

The sentences are not final and can be appealed.  Kommersant asserted that one of the men “fully acknowledged guilt, the other – partially.”  If they did so, as often happens, because the state-provided lawyers promise a lighter sentence in exchange for admitting the charges, the men were deceived.