Officer in Putin’s security service who ‘REFUSED’ to kill Ukrainians and fled to Kazakhstan instead is deported to Russia and now faces up to 15 years in jail
- Major Mikhail Zhilin, 36, could be the subject of torture, says his wife
- He was not permitted to go abroad and his bid for asylum was rejected
- The FSO officer had access to Russian state secrets, it is reported
An officer in Vladimir Putin‘s security service who refused to slaughter Ukrainians and instead fled to Kazakhstan has been deported to Russia.
Major Mikhail Zhilin, 36, denounced the war and now faces up to 15 years in jail and torture, says his wife, Ekaterina.
The Federal Protective Service [FSO] officer had access to Russian state secrets including Putin’s own communications, it is reported.
He walked through the forests to reach neighbouring state Kazakhstan, but his bid for asylum was rejected.
Mikhail Zhilin, 36, with his wife. The officer in Vladimir Putin’s security service, who refused to slaughter Ukrainians and instead fled to Kazakhstan, has been deported to Russia
Federal Protection Service officer Mikhail Zhilin. He had access to Russian state secrets including Putin’s own communications, it is reported
As an FSO officer, he was not permitted to go abroad and was prevented from having a passport.
He fled when he was due to be moved to the war zone where he would have been ‘obliged’ to ‘kill Ukrainian citizens’.
‘I gave an obligation to defend the freedom and independence of my motherland – the Russian Federation – within its borders, and not to conduct aggressive military operations as part of the armed forces of my country to seize the territories of another state,’ he said.
Major Mikhail Zhilin denounced the war and now faces up to 15 years in jail and torture, says his wife
Mikhail Zhilin with his child. Zhilin walked through the forests to reach neighbouring state Kazakhstan, but his bid for asylum was rejected
Pictured: Ekaterina Zhilina, wife of FSO officer Mikhail Zhilin, talked to journalists on the morning of December 30 saying her husband was taken from the detention facility where he was awaiting deportation and allegedly taken to the border with Russia on the evening of December 29
Mikhail Zhilin with his wife Ekaterina. As an FSO officer, he was not permitted to go abroad and was prevented from having a passport
Mikhail pictured with his wife Ekaterina and kids. Mikhail said: ‘I gave an obligation to defend the freedom and independence of my motherland – the Russian Federation – within its borders, and not to conduct aggressive military operations as part of the armed forces of my country to seize the territories of another state’
The Kazakh authorities have accepted tens of thousands of Russians fleeing the war, but did not show leniency to Zhilin and he was secretly returned to Russia, say reports.
Since being deported this week into the hands of Russian law enforcement, he has vanished, said his wife Ekaterina, 35, who says he is likely to face torture for fleeing Russia, or to be sent to fight in the war.
A court statement in Kazakhstan capital Astana said: ‘He was an engineer at the FSO’s Centre for Special Communications and Information in Novosibirsk.
Mikhail Zhilin with his wife Ekaterina. He was arrested in Kazakhstan after fleeing Russia
Major Mikhail Zhilin fled when he was due to be moved to the war zone where he would have been ‘obliged’ to ‘kill Ukrainian citizens’
The Kazakh authorities have accepted tens of thousands of Russians fleeing the war, but did not show leniency to Zhilin and he was secretly returned to Russia, say reports
Since being deported this week into the hands of Russian law enforcement, Zhilin has vanished, said his wife Ekaterina, 35, who says he is likely to face torture for fleeing Russia, or to be sent to fight in the war
‘He serviced government communications, which means he had access to [Russian] state secrets.’
He had access to Putin’s contacts with other Russian officials.
Zhilin has relatives in the Ukrainian region Kherson.
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