October 20, 2026, 12:41 PMRSSRU

Grigorii Skvortsov

ImprisonedChecked October 18, 2026

Grigorii Skvortsov, born 1989, Moscow. Charges: Article 275, Russian Criminal Code (Treason against the state); “Grigorii Skvortsov’s case of high treason”. Sentence (June 26, 2025): 16 years' imprisonment in strict-regime penal colony and 1 year's restriction of liberty. Status: imprisoned; deprived of liberty since July 17, 2025; place of detention: Penal colony No. 5, Arkhangelsk Oblast. Recognition: Memorial: Support for Political Prisoners — recognised as a political prisoner, October 21, 2025.

In brief

Moscow · Moscow · Artists

Sentence

16 years

imprisonment in strict-regime penal colony and 1 year's restriction of liberty

Verdict June 26, 2025

Upheld January 27, 2026

Charges

Full wording of the charges

According to the investigation, he handed over the book “Soviet ‘Secret Bunkers’: Urban Special Fortification of the 1930s-1960s” written by the historian Dmitrii Yurkov to an American journalist, as well as geolocated classified facilities and created an “electronic map” of their locations.

Latest event

January 27, 2026 — cassation

The court upheld the verdict.

Checked October 18, 2026 · no changes since October 15

Recognition by rights defenders

Timeline

  1. · Cassation ruling

    upheld

  2. · Recognised as a political prisoner

    Memorial: Support for Political Prisoners

  3. · Preventive measure: transfer between facilities

  4. · Preventive measure: pre-trial detention

    Pre-trial Detention Centre №4 (SIZO-4) of the Federal Penitentiary Service of the Russian Federation for the Perm Krai

  5. · First-instance verdict

    guilty verdict · 16 years

  6. · Persecution begins

    Grigorii Skvortsov’s case of high treason

Criminal case

Grigorii Skvortsov’s case of high treason

There are no other defendants in this case in the database.

Write a letter

Facility: Penal colony No. 5, Arkhangelsk Oblast

Address (in Russian, as written on the envelope)

165651, Архангельская область, г. Коряжма, Магистральное шоссе, 101, ФКУ «ИК № 5 УФСИН России по Архангельской области», Скворцов Григорий Александрович, 1989 г.р.

Address checked October 18, 2026

Details and sources

Full summary

According to OVD-Info

A resident of Perm, photographer, musician and lover of extreme entertainment. On November 29th, 2023, he was detained. According to Skvortsov, he was beaten, forced to surrender his passwords to the electronic equipment, and recorded his confessions on video. He was then sent to Moscow and taken into custody on charges of high treason. Skvortsov's letter later revealed that he was accused of giving an American journalist materials for a book on Soviet-era bunkers by historian Dmitrii Yurkov. Skvortsov explained that they were photographs of officially declassified documents that he himself had bought from Yurkov. Before his detention, FSB officers had detained an acquaintance of Skvortsov's who was interested in these documents. After that, the photographer asked the journalist not to publish the material. Skvortsov also said that when the law enforcers were recording the video of his confession, they themselves gave him the name of the American journalist. Despite the fact that Skvortsov claimed during interrogation that he had not given the journalist Yurkov's book, but additional materials to it, it is the book that appears in the case. According to the investigation, Skvortsov himself geo-referenced and produced an "electronic scheme" of the location of special facilities. The photographer also said that the investigation carried out some activities in the occupied territories, where he had never been.

On June 26th, 2025, the court sentenced Skvortsov to 16 years in a strict regime colony.

All fields of the record
Citizenship
Russia
Sources (1)

Other people prosecuted under Article 275, Russian Criminal Code

Under the same article, not necessarily in the same case.

All 158 under this article →