In Volyn, an organized crime group has been exposed for illegally importing cars into Ukraine under the guise of humanitarian aid for the needs of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, which were then sold. Three members of the group and two of their accomplices have been notified of suspicion. This was reported by the ESBU, according to UNN.
Details
According to the investigation, a resident of Kovel organized and led the group. He involved two acquaintances in the illegal activity.
The group members had clearly defined roles. The organizer coordinated the purchase of cars abroad, their import into Ukraine, and subsequent sale. Other members received the vehicles in Ukraine, organized their repair, searched for buyers, and sold the vehicles,
In addition, two other men were involved in the illegal activity, who ensured the preparation and submission of declarations regarding the list of goods recognized as humanitarian aid. False information regarding the purpose of importing the cars was entered into the documents.
In total, 13 vehicles with a total value of over 2.9 million UAH were illegally moved across the customs border of Ukraine.
During authorized searches at the suspects' residences, detectives seized documents of charitable organizations, humanitarian aid declarations, registration slips, vehicle acceptance-transfer certificates, state license plates, as well as cars imported into Ukraine as charitable aid.
Three members of the organized group were notified of suspicion under Part 3 of Art. 201-4 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine (movement of excisable goods across the customs border of Ukraine by concealing them from customs control, committed by an organized group). The other two suspects are charged with aiding in the smuggling of excisable goods committed by a group of persons by prior conspiracy, under Part 2 of Art. 201-4 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine. The pre-trial investigation is ongoing.