The county court of the Estonian city of Viru found Pavel Kapustin, a Russian citizen and resident of Narva, guilty of spying against Estonia, providing false information to an administrative authority and violating sanctions, the Estonian Public Prosecutor’s Office announced on 22 July.
The prosecutor’s office adds that on its motion and on the basis of a plea agreement, the court sentenced the defendant to 6.5 years of actual imprisonment and confiscated property worth almost 90 thousand euros.
According to the investigation, Kapustin deliberately established contact with the Russian intelligence service FSB, collected and transferred to it the necessary information and resources, thus taking actions against the security of Estonia.
Also, according to the Estonian security police, the convict collected information about the sentiments of Narva residents.
“The defendant passed various information to the FSB, including information about the dismantling of the monument “Tank T-34” in Narva, as well as about the mood of Narva residents in connection with the rebellion staged by the head of PMC “Wagner” Yevgeny Prigozhin against the Russian leadership,” said prosecutor Troinu Olev-Aas.
In parallel with his intelligence activities, Kapustin transported authorised goods from Estonia to Russia. Security police found that he received orders for sub-sanctioned luxury goods, which he purchased in Estonia and other European countries.
Kapustin was also convicted of providing false information to the Police and Border Guard Department when applying for a residence permit.
Olev-Aas emphasised that even the transmission of seemingly insignificant or publicly available information can be used against Estonia. The mere fact of communication with Russian intelligence services is considered a criminal offence.