Berlin, September 8, 2026—The Committee to Protect Journalists condemns the harsh 15-year prison sentence handed down by Russian occupation authorities to retired Ukrainian journalist Iryna Levchenko on charges of “espionage,” and calls for her immediate and unconditional release.
The Russian-controlled Zaporizhzhia Regional Court said on September 4 it had sentenced Levchenko, who is 64 and has been detained since 2023, to 15 years in prison, according to media reports. Levchenko was charged with passing information to Ukrainian intelligence services.
In a post on its Telegram channel, the court only referred to Levchenko as “L., born in 1961” but the former journalist could be identified in the accompanying footage.
“The 15-year prison sentence given to Iryna Levchenko represents an outrageous abuse of the criminal justice system,” said Fiona O’Brien, CPJ’s Europe and Central Asia regional director on Tuesday. “Russian authorities must immediately release Iryna Levchenko and all other Ukrainian journalists and media workers detained in connection with their work or identity.”
Levchenko, a retired journalist from the southern Ukrainian city of Melitopol, was detained by Russian forces in May 2023 along with her husband, Oleksandr. She had previously worked for several Ukrainian media outlets, including Noviy Den, Mltpl.City, and Fakty i Kommentarii, but had left journalism in February 2022 after Melitopol was occupied.
Her husband was released in August 2024, while Levchenko has remained in Russian custody.
It is not yet known whether the 3.5 years Levchenko has already spent in Russian pretrial detention will count toward her sentence.
Levchenko’s family, who have endured years of uncertainty over her whereabouts and condition, said the verdict left them in despair.
“On September 16, Iryna will turn 65. Fifteen years behind bars at that age in Russian prisons – what is this if not a hidden death sentence? In 15 years she will be 80. If there is no exchange, I am afraid to say this…. Her family will never see her again,” Levchenko´s sister Olena Rudenko told the National Union of Journalists of Ukraine (NUJU).
Sergiy Tomilenko, president of NUJU, called for Levchenko’s release, and said the sentence was illegal.
CPJ has previously reported that Levchenko was held in harsh conditions and that contact with her family was severely limited.
“As of today, we are waiting for a message from Iryna … regarding where she will serve the remainder of her sentence,” Rudenko told CPJ on Tuesday.
In March, CPJ urged the U.S. Congress and the Trump administration to prioritize the release of Ukrainian journalists detained by Russia, including Levchenko and Anastasiya Glukhovska, who was also detained in 2023.
CPJ emailed the Russian-installed Prosecutor’s Office of the Zaporizhzhia region for a comment but did not receive a reply.