Teenager detained for mailing lethal methadone to Ukrainian troops

Ukrainian police in Zhytomyr have detained a 17-year-old girl they say helped Russian security services poison six Ukrainian soldiers. Authorities announced the arrest on Friday, noting that two of the recipients have died from the effects of the medication.

The suspect, who remains unnamed, was apprehended in the city west of Kyiv. Police stated she operated under the direction of a Russian handler and was paid a minimum of 5,000 hryvnias, approximately $111, for her role in the operation. She is suspected of aiding and abetting the premeditated murder of two people, along with shipping psychotropic substances for distribution.

Investigators say the teen contacted soldiers through the messaging app Telegram and sent them packages described as free drugs. The recipients were instructed to consume the contents on camera. The capsules contained a lethal dose of methadone, a substance the soldiers did not know they were taking. Police identified four other individuals who received similar packages, preventing what they described as four additional murders across the country.

If convicted, the teenager faces up to 15 years in prison. Police warned that the Russian goal is to kill citizens and destabilize the internal situation. They urged the public to avoid accepting food, drinks, or medications from unknown sources.

This case fits a pattern of accusations between Ukraine and Russia regarding the use of minors in sabotage operations since the war began in 2022. Ukrainian authorities have opened thousands of investigations into alleged collaboration with Moscow. In 2023, Ukraine accused Russia of poisoning the wife of Kyrylo Budanov, then head of military intelligence and now a presidential adviser. Several GUR personnel were also diagnosed with the same poisoning that year. Paris prosecutors opened a separate investigation in 2023 into the poisoning of a Russian anti-war journalist. President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has claimed in a recent interview with The Sun that he has survived at least five or six assassination attempts since the invasion.