A scheme to help draft dodgers escape by posing as sailors was uncovered in the Odesa region
Law enforcement officials in the Odesa region have uncovered the organizer of an illegal scheme to smuggle men subject to military conscription abroad. According to police, 147 men were being smuggled out of the country under the guise of sailors.
“A current border guard inspector was involved in organizing the scheme, acting in collusion with representatives of crewing companies and shipping agents. The traffickers provided men subject to military conscription with forged seafarer documents, fictitious employment contracts, and ship manifests, which allowed them to leave Ukrainian territory on river vessels under the guise of crew members,” according to a statement on the National Police website.
It is noted that the cost of the “service” was $7,300, and 147 people left the country in this manner.
According to the investigation, the border guard involved his father—the director of a crewing company—as well as other individuals, including shipping agents and employees of crewing companies, in the illegal activities. Participants in the scheme issued forged seafarer documents to “clients.” This allowed them to leave Ukraine on river vessels under the guise of crew members.
Law enforcement officers documented several instances of funds being received. The organizer was detained while receiving another payment—$6,000 from a man subject to military conscription, whom they were supposed to help board a vessel posing as an engine room crew member and cross the state border unhindered.
According to police, on the day of the arrest, law enforcement officers conducted 13 searches at the residences and workplaces of those involved in the scheme, as well as in vehicles, offices, and storage facilities. They seized computer equipment, cell phones, seals, draft records, ship documentation, maritime certificates, forged contracts, crew lists, and other physical evidence confirming the operation of the illegal scheme.
Based on the evidence obtained, the organizer has now been notified of charges under Part 2 of Article 369-2 (abuse of influence) and Part 3 of Article 332 (illegal transportation of persons across the state border) of the Criminal Code of Ukraine. The court imposed a preventive measure on him—detention with the right to post bail in the amount of over 2.6 million UAH.
Further measures are being taken to bring other participants in the scheme to justice. Currently, the case files have been transferred to the State Bureau of Investigation (DBR) for further investigation. The Odesa Regional Prosecutor’s Office is overseeing the criminal proceedings.
The criminal scheme was uncovered by operatives of the Strategic Investigations Department in the Odesa region, regional police investigators, and officers from the “Pivden” Internal and Internal Security Department of the State Border Guard Service, the police clarified.
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