Russia issues record treason sentences in early 2026, legal group says
Russian courts handed down 273 sentences for high treason and espionage during the first half of 2026, surpassing the total number of convictions recorded over the entire 25-year pre-war period.
Sharp acceleration in wartime prosecutions
The convictions involved 284 defendants and exceeded the 170 verdicts delivered between 1997, when Russia's post-Soviet Criminal Code took effect, and the launch of the full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022. The figures were published by independent broadcaster TV Rain, citing an analysis by legal aid group First Department based on court monitoring data from Parubets Analytics.
Terrorism charges and harsh penalties
Wartime prosecutions accelerated sharply in the second quarter of 2026, with courts issuing 162 sentences—a 46% increase compared to the first quarter. Prosecutors also increasingly bundled treason and espionage accusations with terrorism charges, applying dual counts to 71 of the 170 defendants tried from April through June.
Sentencing severity remained exceptionally high, resulting in an average prison term of nearly 16 years alongside two life sentences. Russian security agencies have dramatically expanded the application of Article 275 of the Criminal Code since 2022 to target anti-war dissent and digital communications.
Devaluation of legal thresholds
“Security service officers have completely devalued the concept of high treason in Russia: it has ceased to be an instrument reserved for exceptional cases and has become a convenient tool for persecution and career advancement,” said Yevgeny Smirnov, a defense attorney with the First Department. “Today, the profile of a ‘spy’ is simply a young person who posted something extra on Telegram, and we expect these grim statistics to keep climbing.”
Under Russian criminal procedure, treason and espionage trials are held behind closed doors, depriving defendants of public scrutiny and independent legal oversight.
Translation by Iurie Tataru
