In the Lviv region, an indictment has been submitted to court against a 34-year-old state inspector from one of the customs posts of Lviv Customs, who is accused of unlawfully allowing a lorry carrying undeclared equipment worth almost UAH 7 million to cross the border. This was reported by the Lviv Regional Prosecutor’s Office.
According to the investigation, in September 2023 the inspector was carrying out customs control of a goods vehicle that was travelling through the “red channel”. Despite this, he failed to carry out the necessary customs formalities and allowed the vehicle to leave the customs control zone.
As a result, 176 EcoFlow charging stations of various models, 46 additional batteries for them, as well as 110 Nintendo Switch gaming consoles and 78 PlayStation 5 consoles were illegally brought into Ukraine. The total value of these goods is almost UAH 7 million, and the amount of unpaid customs duties exceeds UAH 1.3 million.
To conceal the violation, the inspector, using his official access to the automated customs clearance system “Inspector”, entered knowingly false information into the electronic log. Instead of the electronics actually imported, he stated that hygiene products worth UAH 1,715 were being transported across the border.
The official is charged with abuse of office causing serious consequences, and with forgery in office (Part 2 of Article 364, Part 1 of Article 366 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine). According to the Prosecutor’s Office, thanks to the measures taken, the damage to the state has been partially compensated in the amount of over UAH 700,000. The pre-trial investigation was conducted by investigators of the Territorial Office of the State Bureau of Investigation based in the city of Lviv.
Pursuant to Article 62 of the Constitution of Ukraine, a person is presumed innocent of committing a crime and may not be subjected to criminal punishment until his or her guilt has been proved in accordance with the law and established by a guilty verdict of a court.