Former Crimean occupation "minister" detained in Kyiv
Serhii Kolobov, former head of the so-called Ministry of Fuel and Energy of the Republic of Crimea under the Russian occupation administration, has been detained in Kyiv.
Source: Prosecutor's Office of the Autonomous Republic of Crimea and the city of Sevastopol; Office of the Prosecutor General of Ukraine; Security Service of Ukraine; a law enforcement source who spoke to Ukrainska Pravda
Quote from the Office of the Prosecutor General: "Prosecutors from the Autonomous Republic of Crimea and the city of Sevastopol, together with investigators from the Security Service's Main Directorate in the Autonomous Republic of Crimea, have exposed a former 'minister' from temporarily occupied Crimea in Kyiv. He has been notified that he is under suspicion of treason."
Details: The Office of the Prosecutor General said the suspect is a 65-year-old Ukrainian citizen who, according to the investigation, had served since 2012 as head of the Republican Committee of the Autonomous Republic of Crimea for Fuel, Energy and Innovation Policy.
Law enforcement agencies did not identify the suspect by name, but Ukrainska Pravda has learned that he is Serhii Kolobov.
Investigators established that after the occupation of Crimea, he voluntarily agreed to head the so-called Ministry of Fuel and Energy of the Republic of Crimea, becoming part of the Russian occupation administration.
While serving in that position, prosecutors say, he organised the work of the illegally established authority and helped implement Russia's policies in the fuel and energy sector on the occupied peninsula.
The suspect later left the so-called ministry and continued working in occupied Crimea as the "director" of several Russian-controlled joint-stock companies.
In 2026, the former official travelled to government-controlled Ukraine and settled in Kyiv. According to the Security Service, he arrived to deal with personal matters. Law enforcement officers tracked him down and detained him.
During a search of his temporary residence, officers seized Russian internal and international passports, as well as electronic devices.
At the prosecutor's request, a court ordered that he be held in custody without the possibility of bail. The investigation is ongoing.
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