SBU adds high treason charge against pro-Russian blogger Anatoliy Shariy
Ukraine’s SBU security service has charged pro-Kremlin blogger Anatoliy Shariy with another count of high treason, the service announced on July 6.
The SBU said Shariy helped Russia’s Federal Security Service, or FSB, to make and distribute staged videos of Russians interrogating Ukrainian prisoners.
The law enforcers said that Shariy personally advised the FSB on how to properly film interrogations and what questions to ask prisoners of war.
"After filming (was done), he edited the video, and cutting out moments that were 'unfavorable' for Russia," the SBU said.
"The Russian Federation then used the 'edited' footage to artificially discredit the military and political leadership of Ukraine, in particular in the international arena."
The SBU said an accomplice in occupied Sevastopol, former head of the Main Department of the National Police in Vinnytsia Oblast Anton Shevtsov, who is also suspected of treason, was Shariy’s liaison with the FSB.
The SBU said Shariy received videos of the interrogations of two captured Ukrainian soldiers from Shevtsov.
After "editing" the files, they were "approved" by a representative of the FSB, and then the blogger "supplemented the story with his own comments, posted it on his internet platforms and reported to his overseers, sending links to the publications."
Shariy has been charged with high treason before – in February 2021. If convicted, he faces a maximum penalty of life imprisonment on each count.
He is believed to be hiding in Spain.
The military war may be swinging in our favor, but the information war continues.
Just as an army needs soldiers, so does a free society need its journalists to ensure that people have access to honest, trustworthy voices to understand the world around them.
For the past five years, The New Voice of Ukraine has been working tirelessly to push back against Russian narratives and defend democracy. But we cannot do it alone.
Please consider supporting us on Patreon for just $5 a month – your donation does directly to supporting journalists and ensuring that this front of the infowar says solid and defended.
Thank you.
Follow us on Twitter, Facebook and Google News
