Law enforcers serve village starosta suspicion notice of smuggling a person liable for military service abroad in Lviv region
In return for $16,600, the official promised to update a man of military age’s military registration documents and smuggle him across the state border outside official checkpoints. He faces up to nine years in prison for his actions.
The village starosta, who organised a scheme to smuggle conscripts abroad, was exposed by investigators of the Serious 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 Specialised Defence Prosecutor’s Office in the Western Region.
The police established that the offender promised a man of mobilisation age to update his military registration data for USD 2,600 and to illegally transport him across the border of Ukraine, bypassing official checkpoints, for another USD 14,000.
Law enforcement officers detained the official in accordance with Art. 208 of the Criminal Procedure Code of Ukraine when he received a part of the money from the “client” in the amount of USD 7,000. The police found out that a few days ago, the offender had already received money from the man for updating military registration documents.
Investigators served the detainee a notice of suspicion of committing criminal offences under Part 3 Art. 332 (Illegal transfer of persons across the state border of Ukraine) and Part 2 Art. 369-2 (Trading in influence) of the Criminal Code of Ukraine. The maximum penalty provided for by the sanctions of the articles is up to nine years in prison with disqualification to hold certain positions or engage in certain activities for up to three years and confiscation of property.
The pre-trial investigation is ongoing. The court will soon choose a type of detention for the suspect.
Lviv regional police communication department