Deliberately false prosecution of innocent people for statistics – an investigator and a former detective are suspected
Under the procedural supervision of the Lviv Regional Prosecutor’s Office, a senior investigator and a former operative of one of the district police departments of the Main National Police of Lviv region were served suspicion notices.
They are charged with bringing a person who is known to be innocent to criminal responsibility, committed by prior conspiracy by a group of persons (Article 28(2) – Article 372(2) of the Criminal Code of Ukraine). The ex-police officer is also suspected of forgery in office (Article 366(1) of the Criminal Code of Ukraine).
According to the investigation, the suspects organised a scheme to bring an innocent person to criminal responsibility in order to increase the detection rate.
For this purpose, the police created artificial evidence, namely the protocols of interrogation of witnesses and the victim, as well as the protocol of the investigative experiment. On the basis of this evidence, the investigator signed a knowingly false notice of suspicion against an innocent man.
Subsequently, on the basis of this fictitious evidence, an indictment against the victim was sent to court.
The detective has now been dismissed from the police.
By a court decision, the senior investigator was removed from his position.
It should be noted that the head of a department of the same police department was also involved in this criminal scheme. The materials against him were separated into separate proceedings and the indictment was sent to court. The trial is ongoing.
The pre-trial investigation is being carried out by investigators of the Territorial Department of the State Bureau of Investigation, with operational support from the Lviv Department of the State Bureau of Investigation of the National Police of Ukraine.
Note: Pursuant to Article 62 of the Constitution of Ukraine, a person is presumed innocent of committing a crime and shall not be subjected to criminal punishment until his or her guilt is proved by law and established by a court verdict of guilty.