A 34-year-old Russian physicist is facing 25 years in prison after authorities accused him of preparing a DDoS attack, planning a sabotage operation, and committing treason. The first two charges are based on circumstantial evidence, while the treason charge is in connection with donations he made to Ukrainian charity organizations. Here’s what we know about the case.

Moscow prosecutors have asked a court to sentence physicist Artyom Khoroshilov to 25 years in prison on charges of state treason, attacking critical infrastructure, and preparing a sabotage attack.

Khoroshilov’s arrest first became public in February 2024, when state media reported that a district court had extended his detention on accusations of unlawfully interfering with Russia’s critical information infrastructure. In August of that year, the Federal Security Service (FSB) announced it was opening a “state treason” case against him. Court records later showed that the 34-year-old scientist had actually been arrested in December 2023, and FSB-released footage confirmed he was detained during the winter.

According to the outlet T-Invariant, Khoroshilov grew up in the Moscow region and earned his master’s degree there in 2014. Friends and colleagues said he had close relatives in Ukraine and that his parents are “originally from there.” They also described him as someone who had never engaged in social, political, or radical activities. After graduating, he joined the Prokhorov General Physics Institute’s Low Temperatures and Cryogenic Engineering Department.

Authorities reportedly raided his apartment in late January 2023, seizing nitrate fertilizer. Khoroshilov was detained for four days and charged with a minor offense for using profanity, then released. He remained free until his December arrest.

Imprisoned for donating

• Russian pilot arrested for allegedly donating to Ukraine’s military
• Russia has opened 76 criminal cases over donations to Navalny-founded Anti-Corruption Foundation in past three years
• Moscow court jails ‘Nemtsov Bridge’ activist for 3.5 years for donating to Anti-Corruption Foundation
• ‘He continues to support them’ Russia sentences former Yandex employee to 15 years in prison for donating $500 to Ukraine over three years ago

The “state treason” charge centers on the FSB’s allegation that Khoroshilov “regularly transferred personal funds and cryptocurrency to accounts of Ukraine-registered foundations for purchasing weapons for the Ukrainian Armed Forces.” Citing court documents, Mediazona reported that prosecutors accuse him of sending nearly 700,000 rubles ($8,900) from his bank account and in cryptocurrency to Come Back Alive, a charity supporting Ukrainian military personnel, and to other organizations. Investigators classified these transfers as treason. Khoroshilov said that in spring 2022 he decided to help relatives in the Kyiv region and other civilians and, unable to find purely humanitarian organizations and sent money even to groups assisting the Ukrainian military.

The second set of charges concerns a DDoS attack on Russian Post servers in early August 2022. Case files cited by T-Invariant say 500 IP addresses were involved, including one linked to Khoroshilov’s computer. Prosecutors claim he joined a Telegram channel called “IT Army of Ukraine,” where he received instructions, and that investigators found a DDoS tool on his computer containing Russian Post server addresses. Khoroshilov admitted downloading and running the program but said he did so only to test its functionality. He denied communicating with channel administrators and said he did not run the software on August 3–4, 2022, when the attack allegedly occurred.

You’re currently reading Meduza, the world’s largest independent Russian news outlet. Every day, we bring you essential coverage from Russia and beyond. Explore our reporting here and follow us wherever you get your news.

In court, a representative of Russian Post’s monitoring center testified that the DDoS attack had been contained and did not affect critical systems. The company briefly suspended services, he said, but the impact was reputational and caused no material damage.

The third charge, preparing for a sabotage attack, stems from the discovery in Khoroshilov’s apartment of aluminum foil, three types of nitrate, fire-starter fluid, and a photograph of railroad tracks near a military unit. Khoroshilov said he bought the nitrate for seedlings and noted that the seized items were insufficient to build an explosive device. Chemist Andrey Kazakov, a prosecution witness who was introduced as an explosives expert even though his field is rare earth elements, testified that a casing would be required for an explosive device and acknowledged that all of the seized items are common household materials.

Khoroshilov confirmed he had photographed a section of railway tracks in Noginsk. He said the line runs near his home in a wooded area where locals often walk because train traffic is light. “While out walking on May 1, 2022, I took a photo of a device by the tracks that I didn’t recognize, so I could look up what it was later online. I never returned to those photos,” he said. He added that he did not know the rail line served a military unit located 20 kilometers (12 miles) away.

In her closing statement, prosecutor Madina Dolgiyeva argued that Khoroshilov’s “high intellectual potential” worsened his alleged crimes. “The defendant Khoroshilov has higher education, an academic degree, and positive character references. But it is precisely these circumstances that exacerbate his guilt. Possessing a high level of intellectual ability, he deliberately and purposefully directed his knowledge and skills toward undermining the security of his own country, acting not out of ignorance, but from deep and persistent anti-state convictions,” she said.