Hospital programmer sentenced to 14 years for passing Russian military data to Ukraine

A Russian court has sentenced 37-year-old hospital IT worker Alexander Levchyshyn to 14 years in a maximum-security colony for allegedly passing personal data of Russian soldiers to Ukrainian intelligence. He was also fined 50,000 rubles and banned from working in certain areas for four years after serving his sentence.

Levchyshyn, who worked at a hospital in the city of Bratsk, was accused of copying military medical records and passing them on to Ukrainian special services in April 2022. Investigators allege that he provided the data for publication on a Telegram channel linked to Ukrainian agents, provided the phone numbers of several servicemen, and transferred money to a bank account allegedly used by the Ukrainian Armed Forces to purchase vehicles.

Since the start of the full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, at least 792 people in Russia have been charged with treason, espionage or collaboration with foreign states, according to the human rights project First Department. Activists say FSB agents often start social media conversations with victims about “innocent” topics, then provoke them into making statements about the war — and use them as evidence.

The verdict is another sign of increased domestic pressure and control from the Kremlin. In the context of the cyber conflict with Ukraine, the Russian authorities are increasingly resorting to repression against their own citizens suspected of “treason” — especially when it comes to data leaks.