Russian man sentenced to 7 years in prison for sending crypto to Ukrainian armed forces

A Russian citizen from Yakutia was sentenced to seven years in prison for funding the Ukrainian Armed Forces by sending cryptocurrency to his account.

The man is currently being held in a high-security facility for the purpose of providing financial assistance to the Armed Forces of Ukraine, or AFU, Russian media outlet Izvestia reported. This marks the first public ruling in a Russian court involving the use of cryptocurrency to fund an opposing military organization.

“A criminal case was opened and investigated under Article 275 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation against a resident born in 1988,” the Directorate of the FSB Sakha Republic said in a press release.

The man is accused of “treason in the form of providing financial assistance to a foreign state, international or foreign organization”, which is considered contrary to the security of the Russian government.

The identity of the Russian man is unknown, but he is said to be a resident of the Republic of Sakha, also known as Yakutia, and an employee of a diamond mining company. According to information received at a press conference held by the FSB Directorate, the man joined a group on social media that associated him with members of the Ukrainian armed forces.

Through the group, he received instructions on how to transfer funds via crypto wallet to help finance the AFU, which the Russian Federation considers a “terrorist organization.”

Since Russia invaded Ukraine in 2022, Ukraine has continued to receive millions in donations in the form of cryptocurrency. During 2024, Ukraine surpassed $10 million in decentralized finance transactions, an increase of more than 362% as of October.

In fact, last December Ukraine announced plans to legalize cryptocurrency in early 2025. However, the proposed law is said to treat cryptocurrencies like securities, meaning they would still be taxed once converted into traditional currency. While the government continues to consult with experts and the IMF on the issue, it has maintained that it will not take advantage of tax exemptions to prevent abuse.

Additionally, the Ukrainian government also wants to impose sanctions on Russia’s use of Bitcoin (BTC) to process international payments, after the Russian finance minister announced that the country was using crypto to bypass Western sanctions.