In Mykolaiv, a businessman was kidnapped under the guise of the SBU: they demanded $360,000, his wife gave $152,000
The victim with fractures of both arms has been hospitalized; two Odesa residents have been notified of suspicion, weapons and forged license plates and identification documents have been seized, and accomplices are being identified
In Odesa and Mykolaiv, an investigation continues into the kidnapping and torture of an entrepreneur from whom $360,000 was demanded, and the Office of the Prosecutor General has announced suspicions against two residents of Odesa and is petitioning to hold them in custody without bail.
According to the Office of the Prosecutor General, law enforcement are handling the case in two regions because the crime began in Mykolaiv, while subsequent episodes took place in the territory of the Odesa district.
Investigators established that a businessman from Odesa, who trades grain and is temporarily residing in Mykolaiv, was grabbed in a parking lot in central Mykolaiv. The attackers, who were disguising themselves as SBU officers, forcibly dragged him into a minivan, put handcuffs on him and a bag over his head, depriving him of orientation.
The first night the man was held at an unknown location in Mykolaiv, after which he was transported to a private house in the Odesa district, where the illegal detention and violence continued.
The victim’s phone was confiscated; he was beaten with rubber batons, subjected to electric shocks, had his head clamped with metal vices and was strangled with a rope until he lost consciousness. In addition, when he was bound with tape and unable to defend himself, the attackers jumped on his body, demanding payment of a non-existent debt of $360,000.
Frightened, the entrepreneur agreed to comply with the demands, and his wife handed over $152,000 to the criminals, after which the man was released. He was hospitalized in serious condition; doctors recorded numerous injuries, including fractures of both arms.
Prosecutors of the Chornomorsk District Prosecutor’s Office have announced suspicions against two men, aged 30 and 44, on counts of kidnapping and extortion committed by a group of persons using violence. An additional qualification under the article on torture is being considered.
During searches of the suspects, authorities seized weapons, ammunition, forged state vehicle license plates and identification documents of various organizations.
The prosecution has petitioned the court to detain the suspects without the right to bail, and law enforcement are identifying other possible accomplices in the crime.
Earlier we reported:
- TCK in Odesa operated like an organized crime group (OCG): database data, kidnappings, police cover-up, victims with deferment
- Brawls at a gas station in Mykolaiv region: outsiders beat and robbed locals
- “Overseers” returning? A Mykolaiv resident was extorted for $2,000 with threats of violence against his imprisoned son
- Ten days in captivity: a resident of Mykolaiv region alleged torture by TCK military personnel
- Criminal “series” Ukrainian-style: kidnapping, torture and an underground workshop
