Prosecutors from the Lviv Regional Prosecutor’s Office have sent an indictment to court against a 63-year-old Lviv resident for smuggling excise goods.
According to the investigation, in 2024, the man organized the illegal transportation of heavy machinery into Ukraine with a value of over 1.69 million UAH. While in Germany, he purchased a 15-ton Mercedes-Benz Econic truck. To avoid paying customs duties, the accused entered data into the Automated Humanitarian Aid Registration System indicating that the truck was allegedly intended for the Armed Forces of Ukraine. He used the electronic signature of the head of a charitable foundation, who was unaware of this.
To implement the scheme, the accused involved two men who were also unaware of his intentions. One of them received the vehicle in Poland and crossed the border by presenting a fake declaration to customs officers. The second delivered the truck to Kyiv where it was sold to a commercial enterprise. The vehicle has since been seized and impounded.
Pre-trial investigation was carried out by detectives from the Bureau of Economic Security in Lviv Region. Operational support was provided by the Security Service of Ukraine in the Lviv Region.
Note: According to Article 62 of the Ukrainian Constitution, a person is considered innocent of committing a crime and cannot be subjected to criminal punishment until proven guilty in accordance with the law and established by a court’s guilty verdict.