Collected aid for the Armed Forces under the guise of military personnel: in Zaporizhzhia, dealers "earned" over UAH 8 million on humanitarian aid
Kyiv • UNN
A group of fraudsters has been detained in Zaporizhzhia who, posing as military personnel, sold humanitarian aid, earning over UAH 8 million. The organizer turned out to be a 29-year-old contract soldier of the Armed Forces of Ukraine who had voluntarily left his military unit.
In Zaporizhzhia, law enforcement officers detained a group of fraudsters who, posing as military personnel, received humanitarian aid from charitable organizations and then sold it. According to the SBU, the dealers managed to "earn" over UAH 8 million in 2024-2025, UNN reports.
Details
According to the case materials, among the illegally sold batches of goods were FPV drones and tactical medical supplies that volunteers transferred to the front line.
As the investigation established, the organizer of the scheme was a 29-year-old contract soldier who voluntarily left one of the military units of the Armed Forces of Ukraine where he was serving.
He involved his wife and two unemployed friends in the illegal activity.
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Using forged IDs, the dealers negotiated with philanthropists for donations to the Ukrainian army.
It has been documented how the defendants forged official requests for assistance to the military unit where they allegedly served.
After receiving donations, the fraudsters filmed staged videos about receiving humanitarian aid and sent fake acceptance and transfer acts.
During searches at the dealers' residences and in garage premises, part of the volunteer products that the participants of the "scheme" did not manage to sell were found.
Forged documentation, an official seal, and computer equipment used to produce fakes were also seized.
Add
Currently, all four participants of the organized criminal group have been notified of suspicion in accordance with the crimes committed under three articles of the Criminal Code of Ukraine:
◾️ Part 3 of Art. 201-2 (illegal use of humanitarian aid, charitable donations or gratuitous assistance for profit, committed by an organized group under martial law);
◾️ Parts 2, 5 of Art. 190 (fraud committed by an organized group);
◾️ Part 4 of Art. 358 (use of a knowingly forged document).
The perpetrators face up to 12 years in prison with confiscation of property.