Demanded USD 10,000 for not returning a serviceman to duty — a Military Law and Order Service major detained in Kharkiv region
Kyiv • UNN
Law enforcement officers notified a major of the Military Law and Order Service of suspicion. For USD 10,000, he promised not to report a serviceman who had left his unit without authorization. He was detained while receiving the money.
Law enforcement officers, under the procedural guidance of the Kharkiv Specialized Prosecutor’s Office in the Defense Sphere of the Eastern Region, notified a major of the Military Law and Order Service of suspicion. According to the investigation, he received US$10,000 from a serviceman who had voluntarily left his military unit, UNN reports, citing the Prosecutor General’s Office.
Details
The suspect was identified as a senior officer of the special-purpose department of one of the territorial administrations of the Military Law and Order Service of the Ministry of Defense. The investigation established that, during an official assignment to the Kharkiv Zonal Department of the Military Law and Order Service, he located the serviceman using departmental information databases.
The man introduced himself as an employee of a Territorial Recruitment and Social Support Center and concealed his affiliation with the Military Law and Order Service. He threatened the serviceman with possible deployment "to the front line" or to a so-called "punishment battalion," and also convinced him that he could influence his subsequent fate.
For US$10,000, the officer promised not to inform law enforcement agencies about the serviceman’s whereabouts and not to take measures to return him to service. Initially, he demanded between US$5,000 and US$7,000, but later increased the amount to US$10,000. As a "guarantee," he took the man’s military ID and pension certificate. The serviceman contacted law enforcement officers, who documented the officer’s unlawful activities
The suspect was detained on July 25 of this year while receiving US$10,000. In addition to the money, mobile phones, documents, data storage devices, bank cards, cash, a BMW X5, ammunition and other material evidence were seized from him.
The man was notified of suspicion under Part 3 of Article 368 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine (Acceptance of an offer or promise, or receipt of an unlawful benefit by an official). The article provides for imprisonment for a term of five to ten years with confiscation of property, as well as deprivation of the right to hold certain positions or engage in certain activities for up to three years.
The court ordered the preventive measure of detention with the alternative of posting bail of UAH 832,000. The suspect’s property was seized.
It will be recalled
Law enforcement officers stopped the activities of a criminal organization that defrauded approximately 800 people of more than UAH 40 million under the guise of investing in cryptocurrency.