A court in Zakarpattia has brought the case involving an attempt to sell an infant to a close
In Zakarpattia, a court has sentenced a 46-year-old man who attempted to illegally transport an 11-month-old boy abroad under the guise of adoption. He planned to receive tens of thousands of dollars for this scheme but was detained at a border crossing along with the child. He has now been sentenced to 10 years in prison with confiscation of property, according to the Office of the Prosecutor General.
In Zakarpattia, a court has brought to a close a case that has been ongoing since 2023 and concerns an attempt to illegally transport an infant abroad under the guise of adoption, where instead of following legal procedures, a scheme was devised to profit from the child and a vulnerable woman who found herself in difficult life circumstances.
According to the Office of the Prosecutor General, a 46-year-old man, who previously worked as a caregiver at a boarding school, was looking for a way to profit from the illegal removal of a child and expected to receive approximately $25,000 in total. He agreed with a woman from Zhytomyr that, for $5,000, she would allegedly hand over her 11-month-old son for adoption in Spain.
Law enforcement officials determined that the man did not limit himself to mere agreements but met with the woman several times, photographed the child, and prepared documents for crossing the border, effectively overseeing the process until the moment of departure. All of this took place under the guise of a legal adoption procedure, although in reality it bore the hallmarks of human trafficking.
He was detained in June 2023 at the “Mali Selmentsi” border crossing while attempting to cross the border with the child. Since then, he has been in custody, and the investigation continued to gather evidence of his actions. The court found the man guilty of attempted human trafficking involving a minor and sentenced him to 10 years in prison with confiscation of property.
Separately, the prosecutor’s office noted that this was not the only incident in his history: in June 2025, he had already been convicted of embezzling over 6.3 million hryvnias in state aid intended for the family of a deceased serviceman. At that time, according to the investigation, he gained their trust as a godfather and gradually transferred funds to his own accounts, spending them on personal needs.
In Zakarpattia, a court sentenced a former boarding school teacher to 10 years in prison for attempting to sell an 11-month-old boy under the guise of adoption. Along with the sentence, the man’s property was confiscated.
On May 14, the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine passed in the first reading draft law No. 15167, which provides for the creation of a special fund for a military levy. According to the document, all proceeds from this levy will be used exclusively for the financial support of Ukrainian Armed Forces personnel.
On May 14, the Ukrainian parliament approved amendments to the Statute of the Garrison and Guard Services of the Armed Forces of Ukraine.
