Hidden car compartment worth €10,000: scheme for smuggling people abroad uncovered in Mykolaiv
The suspect was taken into custody with the possibility of bail
In Mykolaiv, law enforcement officers detained a 44-year-old resident of Chernivtsi Oblast who, for money, promised to help a person liable for military service illegally leave Ukraine. The man planned to personally deliver the client to the border with Moldova, hiding him in a specially equipped secret compartment of a vehicle.
According to the investigation, the suspect offered the military-liable Mykolaiv resident an unhindered transfer between regions to the state border. He priced his services at 8 thousand euros, and additionally requested 2 thousand euros for preparing the vehicle. The remainder of the payment was to be handed over after arrival at the designated location.
Police detained the man in procedural order under Article 208 of the Criminal Procedure Code of Ukraine after he received part of the illicit payment. Law enforcement officers seized the money and the vehicle with the specially equipped hiding place.
Investigators, under the procedural guidance of the prosecutor’s office, notified the detainee of suspicion under part 3 of Article 332 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine — for facilitating the illegal transfer of persons across the state border of Ukraine by advice, instructions and provision of means, committed for mercenary motives.
For the charged offense, the man faces up to 9 years of imprisonment, deprivation of the right to hold certain positions or engage in certain activities for up to 3 years, and confiscation of property.
Currently, the court has chosen detention with the possibility of bail as the preventive measure for the suspect. Law enforcement officers are identifying other persons who may be involved in the crime. The pre-trial investigation continues.
The illegal activity was uncovered and stopped by investigators of the Mykolaiv District Police Department with operational support from officers of the regional SBU department and the 26th Border Guard Detachment of the State Border Guard Service of Ukraine, and under the procedural guidance of the Mykolaiv District Prosecutor’s Office.
Source: Police of Mykolaiv Oblast.
