Odesa doctors are under investigation for fake certificates

A scheme to evade mobilization was exposed in Odesa region. Doctors were making fake certificates of serious illness to help citizens avoid service and go abroad.

This is evidenced by the ruling of the Suvorov District Court.

In Odesa, a large-scale mobilization evasion scheme was uncovered, which, according to the investigation, involved medical workers from municipal and private institutions, including the Odesa Regional Clinical Hospital of the Odesa Regional Council and KIND LLC.

According to law enforcement, officials of these institutions, in collusion with other doctors, produced and passed on forged medical documents - referrals to the Medical and Social Expert Commission (MSEC), extracts from outpatient and inpatient records, epidemic reports, etc. The documents indicated serious illnesses and treatments that did not actually exist so that citizens could receive disabilities, avoid conscription, and travel abroad during martial law.

Official letters from Municipal Clinical Hospital No. 5 and Municipal Clinical Hospital No. 10 of Odesa City Council indicate that the persons for whom the fake certificates were issued did not seek medical care and were not in hospital. A check of the data in the electronic healthcare system also confirmed the absence of information on the provision of relevant medical services to them.

The investigation found that the scheme involved the heads of medical commissions, doctors of several specialties, and private doctors.

During the searches in July 2025, medical records, forms with seals, copies of orders, personal seals of doctors, printouts of electronic medical documents and other items that could be evidence were seized from the offices. Separately, on August 1, 2025, a smartphone was seized at the place of residence of one of the defendants.

The court granted the prosecutor's request to seize the seized property to preserve it as material evidence in the criminal proceedings initiated under Part 1 of Article 114-1 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine - obstruction of the lawful activities of the Armed Forces of Ukraine.

Recently, law enforcement officers conducted more than 60 searches in different regions of Ukraine, in particular in Odesa and Mykolaiv regions, seizing forged certificates. As a result of the operation, 27 people who used fake medical documents to exempt or defer mobilization were served with suspicion notices. The investigation is ongoing, and the suspects face up to 10 years in prison.

Анна Бальчінос