The ruling was published by occupation-linked channels, Ukrinform reports.
According to Russian sources, after the occupation of Melitopol, the journalist remained in the city and did not renounce her Ukrainian citizenship.
"After contacting a resident of Ukrainian-controlled territory via the Telegram messenger, the woman agreed to assist the Ukrainian special services by providing information about the locations of administrative buildings and employees of Russian authorities, as well as the routes used by Russian military personnel, military equipment, weapons and other troops and military formations in the Zaporizhzhia region," the Institute of Mass Information quoted the occupation-linked channels as saying.
According to information from the occupation court cited by the media, in February 2023, the woman allegedly provided information about Russian state ministries and agencies, including security and defense bodies, along with their addresses and lists of employees.
"The transfer of this information to the Ukrainian side could have resulted in strikes against the locations of these strategic facilities," the occupation court claimed.
The occupiers also alleged that Levchenko failed to delete the information from her phone.
The Russian authorities charged her with espionage under Article 276 of the Russian Criminal Code, which concerns the transfer, collection or storage, for the purpose of passing to the enemy, of information that can be used against the Russian Armed Forces.
Read also: Some Ukrainian POWs lost their sanity from hunger in Russian captivity, Ukrainian marine saysThe so-called "Zaporizhzhia Regional Court" found the former journalist guilty and sentenced her to 15 years in prison.
Russian forces abducted Iryna Levchenko and her husband, Oleksandr, in early May 2023 in temporarily occupied Melitopol and held them for some time in basements in the city. The couple were detained on the street and initially held together before being separated.
According to Levchenko's sister, Olena Rudenko, the journalist was held in a detention center in Donetsk in a cell measuring approximately 3 by 4 meters together with three other women.
In June 2026, it emerged that Iryna Levchenko had been transferred from a detention center in Simferopol to a detention center in Krasnodar, Russia.
According to RIA South, Oleksandr Levchenko was released in August 2024. He had been held in occupied Melitopol throughout his detention. Upon his release, he was given a document stating that he had allegedly served 21 days of administrative arrest for "violating the curfew."
His passport, bank cards and money seized during the search were not returned. During his entire period in detention, he saw his wife only once, while they were both out for a walk at the detention center, but they were not allowed to speak to each other.
According to the Institute of Mass Information, Iryna Levchenko has worked in journalism since 1981. She worked for factory newspapers, the Melitopol district newspaper Novyi Den, and served as a correspondent for regional and national print media outlets.