Former Ukrainian Football Player Tried To Take Military Equipment Out Of Russia - Source

MOSCOW (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 22nd October, 2020) Former professional footballer from Ukraine Vasyl Vasylenko, who was accused of espionage in Russia, tried to take out military components, developed in the Soviet Union, from Russia, a source told Sputnik.

"Initially, Vasylenko was detained in the framework of a case on attempted smuggling of secret equipment. He came to Russia from a Ukrainian law firm related to the Ukrainian Defense Ministry... Vasilenko was supposed to purchase certain large-sized military equipment written off in the Russian Federation for a fee.

The sale of the equipment became known on the Internet; a website with a corresponding offer was working," the source said.

"This equipment was developed in the USSR in the 1960s, it is still purchased from Russia by many countries, it has no firepower. Vasylenko was detained in Moscow, later he was accused of espionage in favor of the Ukrainian Ministry of Defense," he said.

The source said Vasylenko did not admit his guilt.