A scheme in which men were using the passports of deceased individuals to travel was uncovered in the Lviv region
Employees of the State Bureau of Investigations have completed a pre-trial investigation into a customs inspector, a border guard inspector, and their accomplice, who are accused of organizing the illegal smuggling of men of draft age abroad using other people’s passports.
According to the investigation, the scheme was organized by a customs officer who recruited individuals willing to leave Ukraine illegally. To carry out the scheme, he enlisted the help of a border guard and an acquaintance who had legal grounds to travel abroad.
The men were taken to the “Nizhankovychi–Malhovychi” border crossing, where they underwent passport checks intended for individuals over 60 years of age. Among the documents used were the passport of the customs officer’s deceased father and the passport of a relative of one of the accomplices.
According to investigators, the border guard entered false information into the system, allowing the men to cross the state border unimpeded. Once in Poland, they used their own documents.
Law enforcement officials identified at least six people who had left the country illegally using this scheme. Among them was a military servicemember who had deserted his post.
The cost of such “services” was approximately $15,000 per person. According to the investigation, the border guard received $25,000 for smuggling just a few people.
The indictment has already been submitted to the court. The defendants are charged with organizing the illegal smuggling of persons across Ukraine’s state border, for which they face up to nine years in prison with confiscation of property.
Source: State Bureau of Investigations.
