The criminals regularly extorted money from a resident of Stryi, allegedly to pay off a non-existent debt, intimidating him, exerting psychological pressure and using physical violence.
The group members – three residents of Stryi, two aged 24 and one aged 33 – were exposed by investigators of the General Crimes Investigation Department of the Lviv Police Investigation Department jointly with operatives of the SBU Office in Lviv region, under the procedural supervision of the Lviv Specialised Prosecutor’s Office in the field of white collar crime in the Western region.
At first, the victim transferred to the criminals UAH 10 thousand, then UAH 1800 and UAH 1500. Then the offenders’ appetite grew and they demanded that the man hand over UAH 3,500, and in a few days another UAH 20,000. Each time, the extortion was accompanied by intimidation of the victim, threats to take away his property, and in some cases, physical violence.
On 20 March, law enforcement officers detained three members of the criminal group in accordance with Article 208 of the Criminal Procedure Code of Ukraine in Stryi after they received another “tranche” from the victim in the amount of UAH 20,000.
The pre-trial investigation in the criminal proceedings initiated under Part 4 Article 189 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine is completed. The indictment was sent to the court for consideration.
The sanction of the article provides for imprisonment for a term of seven to twelve years with confiscation of property.
Lviv regional police communication department