In Mykolaiv, a National Guard officer avoids jail for selling volunteer cars

In Mykolaiv, a court sentenced a member of the National Guard of Ukraine who sold cars imported as humanitarian aid for the frontline. Despite the seriousness of the crime and the significant amount of the transaction, the defendant avoided actual imprisonment.

This is evidenced by the decision of the Central District Court of Mykolaiv.

The case concerns the sale of three cars that were imported to Ukraine as aid for defense needs, but were actually used for personal enrichment.

According to the case file, in February 2024, a soldier serving under mobilization organized the sale of vehicles, including Jeep Liberty, Jeep Cherokee and Chrysler Voyager. The total amount of the transaction was USD 13,600, equivalent to more than half a million hryvnias at the time. At the same time, the market value of these cars in Ukraine exceeded UAH 939 thousand.

The investigation established that the vehicles were imported through the Ustyluh-Zosyn customs checkpoint between November 2023 and January 2024 as humanitarian aid for the needs of the army. Nevertheless, the accused decided to dispose of the property at his own discretion, violating the requirements of the law and military regulations.

During the trial, the man fully admitted his guilt and entered into a plea agreement with the prosecutor. The court took into account his sincere remorse, positive characteristics, lack of criminal record, family circumstances and partial assistance to the army, including a contribution of UAH 100,000 to the defense.

As a result, the court sentenced the defendant to 5 years in prison, but released him from serving the sentence with a probationary period of one year. He was also banned from engaging in activities related to humanitarian aid for two years.

The vehicles that were the subject of the crime were transferred to a charitable organization for further transfer to the Armed Forces of Ukraine. The court also canceled the seizure of the property and ordered the defendant to reimburse the costs of the examinations.

In March, in Mykolaiv region, the court considered a police request for access to documents and items in a criminal case on embezzlement at generators. According to the investigation, village head Valeriy Khomitsky developed a corruption scheme to misappropriate budget funds.

Анна Бальчінос