Man detained in Odesa on suspicion of building a criminal vertical in the South

The National Police of Ukraine reported the detention in Odesa of a man who is considered a key figure in building a criminal vertical in Mykolaiv, Odesa and Kherson regions.

According to the press service of the Main Directorate of the National Police in Odesa region, the detainee was officially recognized by Russian criminal authorities, and under their supervision he reported on his activities and transferred part of the criminal proceeds to a cash fund used to maintain the criminal structure and strengthen its influence.

It was through these connections that he received the status of a "posyonets", i.e. the exclusive right to influence criminal proceedings in penal institutions in southern Ukraine.

His illegal activities were documented and exposed by investigators of the Main Investigation Department of the National Police jointly with operatives of the Strategic Investigations Department. As part of the pre-trial investigation, the police conducted 50 authorized searches in four regions of Ukraine. As a result of the special operation, the "lookout" was detained in accordance with Article 208 of the Criminal Procedure Code of Ukraine.

The investigation documented numerous episodes of criminal influence. One of them concerns an attempted raider seizure of an agricultural enterprise. The businessman, who refused to act on Naum's instructions, was offered a demand of USD 550 thousand or a voluntary transfer of a property complex in Odesa region and 60 trucks. In case of refusal, the entrepreneur was guaranteed problems.

Separately, the police recorded large-scale abuses in pre-trial detention centers and colonies. In particular, they documented a case of systematic extortion of money from a detainee who did not recognize the thieves' "rules." He was intimidated, threatened with physical violence and isolation. Due to pressure and blackmail, the victim was forced to transfer funds - a total of more than 86 thousand hryvnias. The money was sent by his mother to accounts registered in the names of fictitious persons or topped up the phones of the "watchers".

Based on the collected evidence, the offender was served a notice of suspicion of establishing and spreading criminal influence (Article 255-1 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine) and extortion in a particularly large scale (Article 189 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine). Additionally, two more persons were served suspicion notices - the former and current so-called "warden" of the Mykolaiv pre-trial detention center. Naum was taken into custody.

The sanctions of the charged articles provide for punishment in the form of up to fifteen years of imprisonment with confiscation of property.

Кирило Бойко