Top Russian Hypersonic Missile Scientist Charged With Treason

A leading Russian scientist in hypersonic flight was arrested on suspicion of treason on Friday, August 5, 2022, Russian state media revealed, Uliana Pavlova and Jonny Hallam reported for CNN.

Photo Insert: Arrested by Russian authorities was Dr. Alexander Shiplyuk, director of the Institute of Theoretical and Applied Mechanics of the Russian Academy of Sciences' Siberian Branch.

Dr. Alexander Shiplyuk, director of the Institute of Theoretical and Applied Mechanics of the Russian Academy of Sciences Siberian Branch, is the third Russian scientist this summer to be arrested on suspicion of treason.

The institute's scientific director Vasily Fomin told the Russian news agency TASS that Shiplyuk was sent to the Lefortovo pre-trial detention center in Moscow.

His detention comes after the arrest on June 27 of the chief researcher of the institute, Anatoly Maslov, who is suspected of transferring state secret data related to hypersonic missiles.

According to the institute's website, Shiplyuk heads a technology lab with unique wind tunnels purpose-built for simulating hypersonic conditions.

On June 30, the Sovetsky District Court of Novosibirsk arrested another scientist, Dmitry Kolker, a researcher at the Institute of Laser Physics of the Siberian Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences. Kolker was detained on state treason charges for allegedly collaborating with China's security services, Reuters reported.

Kolker, who was diagnosed with stage four cancer, died while being transferred from the pre-trial detention center.

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