Number of ‘high treason’ and ‘espionage’ cases this year exceeds total for all pre-war years, says First Department
Russian courts convicted 284 people in cases involving ‘high treason’ and ‘espionage’ during the first half of 2026. This exceeds the total number of convictions recorded in all the years before Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine (170 convictions). If the current pace continues, the total number of people convicted under these charges could approach 600 by the end of the year.
Key findings
- The number of convictions under Articles 275 (‘high treason’), 275.1 (‘confidential cooperation with a foreign state’), 276 (‘espionage’) and 276.1 (‘providing assistance to the enemy’) rose from 111 in the first quarter to 162 in the second — an increase of 46% in just three months. A total of 170 people were prosecuted under these provisions during the second quarter.
- May 2026 was the busiest month on record, with 57 convictions — the highest monthly figure since the current Russian Criminal Code came into force in 1997.
- During the first six months of the year, Russian courts heard cases involving 284 people and handed down 273 convictions — 26% more than during the same period in 2025, when 216 convictions were recorded.
- With 62 working days in the second quarter, Russian courts convicted almost three people a day on average of ‘high treason’ or ‘espionage’.
- The number of new cases also continued to rise: 149 were brought before the courts in the first quarter, compared with 202 in the second, an increase of 36%.
- ‘High treason’ charges are increasingly being combined with terrorism-related offences (Articles 205–205.5). In the second quarter, this applied to 71 of the 170 defendants (41.8%). By contrast, the proportion of cases involving sabotage-related offences (Article 281 and related provisions) fell from 14.9% to 7.1%.
- Proceedings remain highly opaque: the identities of almost three-quarters (74%) of those convicted have not been made public.
- The average sentence is approaching 16 years in a penal colony, while two defendants were sentenced to life imprisonment.
- During the first half of 2026, at least 73 Ukrainian nationals were convicted, accounting for around a quarter of all those sentenced.
The full report in Russian is available on the First Department website.