The Court of Appeal upheld the verdict against a 52-year-old resident of Yavoriv district, who was sentenced to 9 years’ imprisonment with confiscation of property for extorting a non-existent debt. This was reported by the Lviv Regional Prosecutor’s Office.
The court found that in April–June 2023, the man, together with an accomplice, demanded USD 2,000 from a resident of Lviv region under the pretext of repaying a debt that in fact did not exist. The convicted man regularly called the victim via the WhatsApp messenger and threatened him and his mother with physical violence if the money was not paid.
In May 2023, the victim met the extortionist in the car park of one of Lviv’s shopping centres. During the meeting, he got into the convicted man’s car and handed over UAH 40,000 as part of the so-called debt. Despite this, the extortion and threatening calls did not stop, and on 15 June 2023, at the same place, the man handed over another UAH 40,000.
Immediately after receiving the second sum of money, law enforcement officers detained the suspect under Article 208 of the Criminal Procedure Code of Ukraine. During searches at his place of residence, they found and seized cash in various currencies — US dollars, euros and Polish zloty — totalling almost UAH 16 million equivalent. The pre-trial investigation in the proceedings was conducted by investigators of the Investigation Department of the Security Service of Ukraine in Lviv region.
By the verdict of the court of first instance, the man was sentenced to 9 years’ imprisonment with confiscation of property. The defence appealed this decision, but the prosecutors opposed the arguments of the appeal and insisted on the lawfulness and validity of the sentence imposed. The Court of Appeal supported the position of the prosecution and left the verdict unchanged, so the convicted man will spend 9 years behind bars.