Mykolaiv Soldier Avoids Prison for Illegal Grenade Possession

A Mykolaiv soldier was sentenced for illegal possession of a live grenade. The court took into account his service and changed the sentence.

Mykolaiv's Korabelnyi District Court sentenced a serviceman who illegally possessed an M67 fragmentation grenade. The man, who had several convictions for theft, fraud and drugs, this time avoided imprisonment, although he faced up to 7 years in prison.

On November 12, 2024, police received information about the possible presence of explosives in the "Spravzhny" grocery store on Korabeliv Avenue. During the inspection of the store, they found an M67 hand fragmentation grenade with an M-213 fuze under the freezer. The investigation subsequently established that the grenade was hidden by a serviceman who, at the time of the incident, was serving as a rifleman in an assault specialized unit.

According to the case file, the man purchased the grenade under unspecified circumstances and kept it on his person without proper authorization. During the investigation, he pleaded guilty and entered into a plea agreement with the prosecutor.

The court took into account the circumstances of the case, as well as the agreement with the prosecutor's office, and sentenced him to a two-year service restriction.

The convict has been repeatedly prosecuted:

• In 2015, he was sentenced to 4 years and 3 months for theft, fraud and drug possession.
• 2016 - another case ended with a similar sentence.
• 2019 - sentenced to 5.5 years for a series of thefts and resistance to law enforcement.
• 2020 - received another sentence for theft, but was released on parole in June 2024 to perform military service under contract.

The court found the soldier guilty under Article 263(1) of the Criminal Code of Ukraine (illegal possession of ammunition). However, taking into account his sincere repentance, cooperation with the investigation and participation in hostilities, the court applied Article 69 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine and replaced the sentence of 2 years in prison with a service restriction with a 20% deduction of his salary to the state. The service restriction for military personnel does not involve imprisonment, but restricts the rights of the convicted person - part of the salary goes to the state, and restrictions are imposed on promotions.

The court also ordered the convict to pay UAH 6,367.20 for the examination and ordered the destruction of the seized grenade. The defendant was released from custody right in the courtroom.

Recently, Mykolaiv police detained a 45-year-old man who was selling drugs by mail and handing them to customers in person. During the search, law enforcement officers seized a significant amount of drugs, explosives and ammunition.

In January, during large-scale operations in the region, police found and seized hundreds of weapons, ammunition and explosives. Over 700 rounds of ammunition, 18 grenades, automatic weapons, a rocket launcher and about 7 kilograms of explosives were found during more than 50 searches.

Анна Бальчінос