Pay up or you'll be beaten: an extortion scheme was operating at the Mykolaiv pre-trial detention center

As reported on April 6 2026 by the Mykolaiv Regional Prosecutor’s Office, prosecutors have already sent an indictment to court under Part 4 of Article 189 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine. The investigation believes that three defendants, aged 25, 33 and 35, while held in a pre-trial detention center, set up a scheme to pressure other detainees and extorted money from them in exchange for not using force.

According to law enforcement, at least three people were harmed by the actions of the suspects. The prosecutor’s office notes that the defendants received a total of 55,200 hryvnias from them. During sanctioned searches on the territory of the pre-trial detention center and other penal institutions, law enforcement officers seized mobile phones, tablets, bank cards and other items that, according to the investigation, were used in the criminal scheme. The pre-trial investigation in this case was carried out by investigators of the Criminal Investigation Department of the National Police in the Mykolaiv region.

If the defendants’ guilt is proven in court, they face up to 12 years imprisonment with confiscation of property. At the same time, pursuant to Article 62 of the Constitution of Ukraine, a person is presumed innocent until their guilt is proven by a guilty verdict of a court.

Reminder: we previously wrote:

• A woman, with the help of “inmates”, extracted a fabricated debt from a jeweler in Mykolaiv
• Are the “overseers” returning? A Mykolaiv resident was extorted for $2,000, with threats of violence against his imprisoned son
• A Mykolaiv resident was subjected to months of threats: they demanded $5,000 and seized his car
• Prison mafia in the service of the Russian Federation: the “overseer” kept southern Ukraine in fear
• Criminal traditions in action: money was extorted from prisoners in the Mykolaiv pre-trial detention center (SIZO)