In the Lviv region, an indictment has been sent to court against the chief state inspector of the customs clearance department at one of the posts of Lviv Customs, who is accused of receiving an unlawful benefit for facilitating the export of foreign currency without declaration.
According to the investigation, the official demanded and received from a citizen an unlawful benefit for the unobstructed export of cash across the state border of Ukraine to the Republic of Poland without undergoing the mandatory declaration procedure.
On 6 April, the inspector was detained at his workplace under Article 208 of the Criminal Procedure Code of Ukraine while receiving USD 1,000 from a citizen in return for the possibility of exporting USD 70,000 across the border without declaration. Law enforcement officers documented several episodes of unlawful activity, during which the suspect received a total of USD 2,500 in unlawful benefit.
The offender was exposed by investigators of the department for the investigation of general criminal offences of the investigative directorate of the Lviv region police together with operatives of the Office of the Security Service of Ukraine in Lviv region, under the procedural guidance of the Lviv Regional Prosecutor’s Office and with the assistance of staff of the internal control department of Lviv Customs.
The pre-trial investigation in the criminal proceedings initiated under Part 3 of Article 368 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine (acceptance of an offer, promise or receipt of an unlawful benefit by an official) has been completed, and the indictment has been sent to court. The accused faces up to ten years’ imprisonment with disqualification from holding certain positions or engaging in certain activities for up to three years, with confiscation of property.