A married couple is being questioned at the Rava-Ruska border crossing on suspicion of illegally traveling to Poland

At the “Rava-Ruska” border crossing, border guards uncovered a suspected scheme involving illegal border crossings. Service members of the 7th Carpathian Border Guard Detachment, together with operational staff, inspected a married couple who were traveling to Poland.

 

A 33-year-old man and his 49-year-old wife—both residents of Ternopil—arrived to leave Ukraine. The woman has a Group II disability.

During questioning, inconsistencies were found in the couple’s answers. The man said they had known each other for about seven years and decided to marry after the woman’s divorce. She, however, stated that they had met only recently. She also noted that this was her sixth marriage and jokingly referred to herself as an “empress.”

At first, the man explained the marriage as being based on mutual feelings and insisted that the age difference did not matter to them. Later, he said that he had agreed with the woman to a so-called “marriage-on-credit arrangement.” The couple was allegedly traveling to Poland for medical treatment.

Border guards notified the National Police of signs of a criminal offense under Article 332 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine—the illegal transportation of persons across the state border of Ukraine.

Source: Western Regional Directorate of the State Border Guard Service of Ukraine—Western Border

Earlier, in the Kyiv region, a scheme was uncovered involving the illegal departure of men to Romania for $15,000.

In western Ukraine, five schemes involving the illegal departure of men abroad were uncovered.

In Odesa, a scheme was uncovered in which men subject to military conscription were being smuggled abroad using fake disability claims.