Ukrainian authorities have arrested a British military instructor accused of spying for Russia and plotting assassinations. Ross David Cutmore, 40, from Dunfermline, was allegedly recruited by Russia's intelligence service, the FSB, to carry out targeted killings on Ukrainian territory between 2024 and 2025.
The Kyiv prosecutor's office stated that in May 2025, Cutmore passed on coordinates of Ukrainian units, photographs of a training facility, and information about military personnel that could be used to identify them. Analysis of his correspondence confirmed he had carried out other tasks for Russian intelligence.
Cutmore, a former British army soldier deployed to the Middle East, arrived in Ukraine early last year to assist its military and later its border guard. According to reports, he was allegedly recruited by Russian intelligence officers in Odesa and paid $6,000 for confidential information on Ukrainian military locations. If found guilty, he faces up to 12 years in prison.
FSB officers reportedly approached Cutmore after he posted adverts offering his services in pro-Russian social media groups. Ukraine's internal intelligence agency said Cutmore received instructions to make an explosive device and coordinates of a cache from which he took a pistol. He is suspected of providing weapons used in the murders of Ukrainian activists Demyan Hanul and Iryna Farion, and MP Andriy Parubiy.
A Foreign Office spokesperson said: 'We are providing consular assistance to a British man who is detained in Ukraine. We remain in close contact with the Ukrainian authorities.'
