An Odessa resident was sentenced to six years in prison for setting off fireworks and setting cars on fire

Fireworks explosions near high schools and the arson of a car turned out to be part of a single criminal ring organized via Telegram. In Odesa, a man was sentenced for carrying out acts of sabotage on commission.

This was reported by Intent, citing a ruling by the Kyiv District Court of Odesa. 

According to the case file, in early 2025, a resident of Odesa, along with an accomplice who later died, agreed to carry out tasks received via the Telegram messaging app. In exchange for the promised reward, they organized the setting off of fireworks at sports fields near two Odesa high schools. The fireworks were set off while martial law was in effect, and the process was recorded on video for subsequent reporting to the client. However, the perpetrators never received the promised payment.

Later, the men agreed to a new task —setting a Citroën Jumper on fire for a reward of nearly 13,000 hryvnias. To do this, they purchased a fire-starting device, prepared a bottle containing a flammable substance, and arrived at the vehicle’s parking spot at night. One of them set the car on fire, while the other monitored the situation and filmed everything on his phone.

As a result of the fire, the flames spread to a Chevrolet Niva parked nearby, which belonged to the company. The total damages amounted to over 484,000 hryvnias: over 190,000 hryvnias to the owner of the Citroën and over 294,000 hryvnias to the company that owned the second vehicle.

During the trial, the man fully admitted his guilt, expressed remorse, and agreed to the civil claims of the victims. The court took his remorse into account but also considered the fact that this was a repeat offense, as the man already had prior convictions.

As a result, the man was sentenced to 6 years and 4 months in prison. In addition to the prison term, the court ordered the defendant to reimburse the victims for their losses, compensate them for over 28,000 hryvnias in forensic examination costs, and confiscated the cell phones used during the planning and commission of the crimes.

In late May, a court in Podilsk remanded a military serviceman into custody on suspicion of setting a truck on fire for a fee. According to the investigation, the man was on leave after being wounded and, together with an accomplice, carried out an order received via Telegram.

Анна Бальчінос