From 2018 until 1 March 2022, he was a freelance labourer in the Ukrainian regiment "Azov". In March 2022, he was detained in Mariupol. He was accused of participation in the activities of a terrorist organisation and violent seizure and retention of power. Human rights activists note that he is a prisoner of war, so he should not have been prosecuted for combat participation, and in addition, they consider the charges absurd. On 26 March 2025 Zharkov was sentenced to 13 years in a strict regime colony.