Smuggling disguised as humanitarian aid: ESBU has referred a case regarding the import of MAN trucks to the court

 Commercial trucks were imported into Ukraine under the guise of humanitarian aid to evade customs duties. The pre-trial investigation in the criminal proceedings has been concluded by detectives of the Territorial Office of the Economic Security Bureau of Ukraine in the Lviv region.

The investigation established that the scheme's organizer arranged the purchase of commercial trucks in EU countries for the purpose of their subsequent illegal importation into Ukraine through Lviv Customs.

To evade customs control and customs duty payments, fictitious documents declaring the import of humanitarian aid were issued for each truck. The declarations included the details of a charitable organization that did not actually conduct any humanitarian activities, as well as information about the vehicles and carriers.

To evade customs control and mandatory payments, knowingly false declarations for goods recognized as humanitarian aid were issued for each vehicle. The documents stated the credentials of a charitable organization that did not actually conduct humanitarian activities, alongside data regarding the vehicles and carriers.

To directly move the trucks across the state border, the suspect involved other individuals who were unaware of the criminal intent. They received the vehicles within the EU and declared them in Ukraine as humanitarian aid.

In total, four MAN commercial trucks with a combined value of over UAH 2 million were moved across the customs border using this method.

During the pre-trial investigation, the suspect voluntarily transferred UAH 250,000 to support the Armed Forces of Ukraine.

The suspect's actions have been classified under Part 1 of Article 201-4 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine (smuggling of excise goods committed on a significant scale). The indictment has been forwarded to the court.

Procedural guidance in the case was provided by prosecutors from the Lviv Regional Prosecutor's Office.