Ex-intelligence officer may be released on bail for $219,000, media reports

Editor's note: The article incorrectly said that Roman Chervinskyi was released on bail on July 15. Suspilne reported that according to the court's ruling, the ex-intelligence officer may be released on bail but will remain in custody until then.

Ukrainian ex-intelligence officer Roman Chervinskyi may be released on bail of Hr 9 million ($219,450) following his arrest in April 2023, Suspilne news outlet reported, citing the court's ruling.

The ex-intelligence officer was remanded in custody until the bail is paid.

Roman Chervinskyi previously served in Ukraine's Defense Intelligence (HUR). He was indicted by the State Security Service (SBU) in April 2023 for abuse of power. According to SBU officials, Chervinskyi, along with others in the HUR, tried to hijack a Russian Air Force aircraft whose pilot was allegedly planning to defect to Ukraine.

According to law enforcement officials, the colonel, along with other people, decided to arbitrarily conduct a special operation to arbitrarily seize a Russian Aerospace Forces aircraft whose pilot allegedly agreed to defect to Ukraine. State authorities did not approve the operation.

Chervinskyi's actions, the investigation revealed, allowed Russia to discover the location of the Ukrainian Air Force and aircraft at the Kanatove airfield. Moscow then launched a strike against the area in July 2022, killing a unit commander and injuring 17 other Ukrainian servicemen.

Chervinskyi was ultimately charged with "exceeding authority or official authority by a military official."

The ex-intelligence officer has also been linked to the Sept. 2022 attack on the Russian Nord Stream pipeline.  

Budanov’s Russian offensive comments ‘a little misunderstood,’ Zelensky says

Ukraine’s military intelligence chief was a “little misunderstood” when it was reported last week that he believed Russia would soon once again attack from the north, President Volodymyr Zelensky said on July 15.

The Kyiv IndependentThe Kyiv Independent news desk