Instead of a transfer to the military—sale for cash: ESBU exposed an illegal scheme for the sale of cars intended for the needs of the AFU

 The cars, which were supposed to be transferred to the AFU as humanitarian aid, were sold through thematic groups in messengers. In total, the scheme covered the illegal import of 16 vehicles worth nearly 2 million UAH. The pretrial investigation was carried out by detectives of the Territorial Office of the ESBU in the Lviv region; currently, the indictment regarding the organizer has been forwarded to court.

The investigation established that a 35-year-old man organized the scheme. He searched for cars on foreign internet platforms, bought them in EU countries, and stored them in Poland near the Ukrainian border.

During the border crossing, declarations were submitted to the customs officers, in which the cars were indicated as humanitarian aid for the AFU. The documents were processed on behalf of a fictitious charitable foundation registered to proxy persons. This allowed the cars to be imported without paying customs duties.

However, the cars were not transferred to the military. The organizer of the scheme used them himself and put them up for sale in messengers. He managed to sell nine cars for cash, and law enforcement officers seized another seven during an attempt to sell them.

The indictment has been forwarded to court under Part 1 of Article 201-4 (contraband of excisable goods in a significant amount) of the Criminal Code of Ukraine.

Procedural guidance is carried out by prosecutors of the Lviv Regional Prosecutor's Office based on materials from the Department of the SSU in the Lviv region.

According to Article 62 of the Constitution of Ukraine, a person is considered innocent of committing a crime until their guilt is proven in accordance with the law and established by a court verdict.