Former police officer sent to prison in Odesa for extortion of bribes

In Odesa, a court sentenced a former police investigator who was accused of extortion and bribery. According to the investigation, the law enforcement officer asked for a thousand dollars for the release of a car that was used as material evidence in the case.

This was reported by Intent with reference to the verdict of the Prymorskyi District Court of Odesa.

According to the investigation, the events unfolded back in 2016. At that time, the law enforcement officer worked as an investigator at the Shevchenkivskyi Police Department in Odesa and was investigating a criminal proceeding regarding the possible forgery of the numbers of components and assemblies of a BMW 520i. The car was seized and recognized as material evidence.

According to the prosecution, after the car was seized, the investigator offered the owner to "resolve the issue" by returning the vehicle for USD 1500. The man refused, but later, during new contacts, the amount was allegedly reduced to $1,000. According to the case file, this was the amount the law enforcement officer demanded for the return of the car that was in her custody.

Fearing illegal actions, the car owner turned to law enforcement. After that, the documentation of the alleged crime was organized. According to the case file, on December 6, 2016, the investigator executed documents for the car, handed it over to the owner, and later received the previously agreed USD 1,000 in the police station yard. Immediately after the transfer of money, she was detained by law enforcement officers.

In court, the defendant pleaded not guilty. She claimed that she neither demanded nor received a bribe, and that the money could have been given to her by accident or planted. The ex-investigator also denied the origin of the traces of a special substance on her hands after her arrest.

During the trial, the court examined witness statements, the results of covert investigative actions, telephone contacts between the parties, inspection reports, and expert examinations. In particular, experts found the same luminescent powder on the marked banknotes and on the washings from the accused's hands, which had been used to treat the banknotes.

The woman was sentenced to six years in prison, banned from holding positions in law enforcement for three years, and ordered to confiscate her property In addition to the basic punishment, the court ordered the convicted woman to pay over UAH 10,000 in expenses for the examination.

The former police officer was also placed on probation for three years for extorting a bribe from a man to avoid being found guilty of an accident and to return his car.

Анна Бальчінос