Based on the materials collected by detectives of the Territorial Office of the Economic Security Bureau of Ukraine in the Odesa region, the court found a 27-year-old resident of the Berezivka community guilty of selling illegally manufactured fuel. The suspect was fined.
Law enforcement officers established that the man, who was not registered as an entrepreneur, had been purchasing illegally manufactured gasoline and diesel fuel at reduced prices for over a year and subsequently reselling it at self-installed filling stations (gas stations) located in the city of Berezivka and the settlement of Dobroslav.
During the investigation, detectives discovered that the suspect had obtained specialized software, which he used to control, account for, and sell the illegally manufactured fuel on the territory of the gas stations. The direct sales of gasoline and diesel fuel were carried out by two individuals whom the defendant hired and paid salaries "in envelopes" (under the table).
In the course of the pre-trial investigation, detectives conducted searches at the gas stations, seizing over 33 tonnes of illegally manufactured A-95 gasoline and diesel fuel. In addition, gas station equipment, 16 containers for storing lubricants and fuels, cash, and draft records were seized. The total value of the seized goods is 3.4 million UAH.
A detective of the ESBU served the defendant with a notice of suspicion for committing a criminal offense stipulated by Part 1 of the Article. 204 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine (illegal manufacturing, storage, sale, or transportation for sale of excisable goods) and referred the case to court.
The man was sentenced to a fine of 85,000 UAH with the confiscation and destruction of the illegally manufactured goods.
Procedural supervision was carried out by prosecutors of the Odesa Regional Prosecutor's Office.