On March 20, 2026, the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) reported suspicion to the russian prosecutor who supported the charges against a captured Ukrainian serviceman.

What is known about the suspect

Petr Yurievich Karandashev (born August 15, 1980) is a russian citizen, a native of Rostov-on-Don, and a Junior Counselor of Justice. He worked in the prosecutor's offices of Zernogradsky and Aksaisky districts in the Rostov region. Since 2022, he has served as prosecutor of the Department of State Prosecutors of the Criminal and Judicial Department of the Rostov Region Prosecutor's Office.

Circumstances of the crime

Between April and September 2024, Karandashev supported the charges in the case against a Ukrainian prisoner of war who participated in a special military mission on the coast of occupied Crimea.

On October 4, 2023, an assault group on a patrol boat and water scooters approached a landing point on the Crimean peninsula. Two soldiers disembarked for reconnaissance, but the group was discovered, and a firefight ensued. During the retreat, one soldier fell into the water. He was found and detained by FSB officers in the area of Kipchak Bay in the Yevpatoria district.

From that moment, in accordance with the Geneva Convention, he acquired the status of a prisoner of war.

Despite this, occupation authorities initiated a criminal case against him, accusing him of a “terrorist act,” “undergoing training for terrorist activities,” illegal possession of weapons, and illegal crossing of the russian border.

On April 12, 2024, the case was submitted to the Southern District Military Court in Rostov-on-Don, where Karandashev supported the state prosecution.

He had full access to the case materials and knew that the defendant was a combatant performing a military mission as part of the Armed Forces of Ukraine. Despite this, he deliberately continued the prosecution and supported the charges during court proceedings.

On September 3, 2024, the court sentenced the Ukrainian soldier to 20 years in prison. In December 2024, the Military Court of Appeal of the russian Federation slightly reduced the sentence to 19 years and 11 months.

The case in the Southern District Military Court was heard by the same judge Obraztsov, whom a Kyiv court sentenced in absentia to 10 years in prison in a similar case on March 17, 2026.

Suspicion

The SBU informed Karandashev of suspicion under Part 1 of Article 438 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine (violation of the laws and customs of war) for illegal criminal prosecution and the conscious, intentional deprivation of a prisoner of war’s right to a fair trial.

The suspect is currently on the territory of russia.