International Tours Abroad: Former Culture Minister Facing Charges
Law enforcement officials have notified the former acting Minister of Culture and Information Policy of Ukraine that he is a suspect in a case involving the illegal smuggling of men of draft age abroad. According to investigators, the trips were documented as “music tour dates” for a band whose members actually had no connection to music. As a result, eight men left the country and have not yet returned to Ukraine.
Investigators describe this case as a scheme in which official documents transformed ordinary trips into “charity concerts,” even though these men never actually performed on stage. According to the Prosecutor General’s Office, border guards initially denied these men permission to leave, but the State Border Service later received a follow-up letter from the ministry requesting that they facilitate the border crossing, this time as “members of a music group.” It was this document that served as the formal basis for their departure from Ukraine.
Prosecutor General Ruslan Kravchenko noted that this was an organized scheme in which their departure was disguised as cultural activity. According to him, on paper the men were “musicians,” but in reality they had no connection to the arts whatsoever, and the whole story was used as a cover for illegally crossing the border.
Investigators determined that a total of eight men of draft age left the country and did not return. Law enforcement officials believe the scheme operated through a network of intermediaries who recruited “band members,” negotiated the terms of departure, and prepared documents for the ministry. The case files also mention financial transactions via bank accounts and crypto wallets, which may have been used for payments among the scheme’s participants.
Separately, the investigation emphasizes that some of the documents were signed by the ministry’s head at the time, which made the departures possible. Following the first phase of the investigation, a businesswoman was placed under suspicion, and the circle of suspects was later expanded to five people, including a former high-ranking official.
The criminal proceedings are currently ongoing, and law enforcement officials are investigating possible additional incidents and other individuals involved. The suspects’ actions are classified as the illegal smuggling of persons across the state border as part of an organized group. Prosecutor General Ruslan Kravchenko announced this on Telegram.
Law enforcement officials uncovered a group of individuals who created a fake paid app that mimicked the state service “Reserve+” and was used to enter false data about those subject to military conscription.
Six educators from the temporarily occupied territories of Donetsk Oblast have been charged with collaboration for cooperating with the Russian occupation authorities.
Ukrainian law enforcement officials have served charges in absentia against a Russian official accused of financing Russian military units participating in the war against Ukraine.
