The Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) has apprehended British citizen Ross David Cutmore, accusing him of acquiring firearms and ammunition from Russia’s Federal Security Service (FSB) to orchestrate assassinations in Ukraine. According to the SBU, Cutmore faces potential penalties of up to 12 years in prison along with the confiscation of his property.

There are conflicting reports regarding Cutmore’s past military involvement, with some suggesting he is a veteran of the British army. However, his military background is not clearly established, nor is the origin of the uniform he is depicted wearing in some images confirmed to be British.

When inquiries about Cutmore’s military history were made, the U.K. Ministry of Defense directed Fox News Digital to the U.K.’s Foreign Office for further information.

A resident walks amidst the ruins near a damaged house, following a Russian strike on a suburb of Odesa, southern Ukraine, on March 7, 2025, during the ongoing Russian invasion of Ukraine. (Oleksandr Gimanova/AFP via Getty Images)

A representative from the U.K. Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) informed Fox News Digital, “We are offering consular support to a British man currently detained in Ukraine. We are maintaining close communication with the Ukrainian authorities.”

The spokesperson added that the FCDO cannot get a British national “out of prison, prevent the local authorities from deporting you after your prison sentence, or interfere in criminal or civil court proceedings. We must follow other countries’ systems,” according to its consular assistance page.

On Oct. 29, without disclosing his name, the SBU announced the detention of a “former military instructor” who was working for the FSB in Kyiv. 

Since Russia’s invasion in February 2022, foreigners have traveled to Ukraine to assist in the war effort after President Volodymyr Zelenskyy made a public plea for veterans to come to Kyiv at the start of the conflict, according to the Financial Times.

Ukrainian security officials detained British national Ross David Cutmore in Kyiv for allegedly working with Russia’s FSB to plan attacks. (East2West)

The SBU said he arrived in Kyiv in early 2024 to serve as a military instructor tasked with training Ukrainian army personnel. A few months later, Cutmore stopped working as an instructor and allegedly offered to collaborate with Russian special services as he sought “easy money,” the SBU claimed. 

Investigators believe he was approached by FSB officers after he posted notices on pro-Russian social media groups, and was then allegedly recruited in Odesa in September 2024 and paid $6,000 to provide Russia with sensitive information, according to reports.

An FSB handler tasked him with gathering information regarding other foreign military instructors and the coordinates of training centers in southern Ukraine.

Ross David Cutmore was apprehended by the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU). (East2West)

The SBU also said that he was sent instructions for making a homemade explosive device, in addition to the coordinates of the cache where he took a pistol with two loaded magazines, but the SBU detained Cutmore at his residence in Kyiv before the task was carried out.

He is accused of providing Russia with information regarding Ukraine’s military and of preparing for “terrorist attacks,” as stated by the SBU.

Members of Ukraine’s Territorial Defense Forces, volunteer military units of the Armed Forces, train in a city park in Kyiv, Ukraine. (AP/Efrem Lukatsky)

The SBU and Kyiv’s Prosecutor’s Office did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital’s request for comment. The FSB could not be immediately reached.