Evidence

Multiple Ukrainian and Western outlets reported this claim directly attributed to Mykhailo Puryshev himself, based on his own public statements/videos. Ukrainska Pravda (Aug 19) reported Puryshev said he was blackmailed by Russia's FSB over his 18-year-old son, who lives in Russia with his ex-wife, and that he traveled to Russia and later left safely. The Kyiv Independent (via Yahoo News and Threads reposts) similarly reported on Aug. 17 that Puryshev claimed the FSB threatened to conscript his son into the Russian army unless he cooperated, and that he recorded an alleged call with an FSB agent before deciding to travel to Russia. These are consistent, first-person accounts reported by reputable Ukrainian outlets, but they rely entirely on Puryshev's own statements and self-recorded videos; no independent verification (e.g., from FSB, Russian authorities, or forensic analysis of the recordings) was found. No fact-check from Reuters, AFP, Bellingcat, or EUvsDisinfo specifically addressing this claim was located.