Odesa Police Officer Among 2 Detained for Organizing Illegal Smuggling of Men Across Border

Law enforcement officers detained two people who organized the illegal transportation of men of military age out of Ukraine. One of them is a law enforcement officer, the other is a resident of Odesa who smuggled men on a rubber boat.

According to the SBI, detectives, together with the SBU and border guards, exposed a police officer from Odesa region who tried to create a channel for illegal travel to Moldova. He was well aware of the border and the location of checkpoints, so in February 2025, he decided to use it for personal enrichment. He involved a military friend who was looking for people to leave the country. The organizer had to coordinate where and when to get around the checkpoints"unnoticed." The cost of such services was 1 thousand dollars per client.

Photo: State Bureau of Investigation.

On March 11, a law enforcement officer was detained while receiving $2,000 for smuggling two men. He was notified of suspicion of organizing the illegal transportation of persons across the state border (Part 3 of Article 332 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine). The policeman faces up to 9 years in prison.

Another scheme of illegal trafficking was exposed in Odesa region.

According to the regional prosecutor's office, a resident of Odesa organized a channel for men to leave by sea for Romania. Under the procedural control of the Black Sea District Prosecutor's Office, he was served a notice of suspicion of illegal trafficking of persons across the border.

Photo: Odesa Regional Prosecutor's Office

The investigation established that the offender offered full support, produced fake military IDs with false marks of deregistration and developed routes for sea border crossing. The cost of this service was $3,400 per person.

The transportation was planned to be carried out at night on a rubber boat with a motor. Customers were provided with GPS trackers, route maps, fuel cans, and detailed instructions. However, the plan failed to materialize as the Ukrainian Navy spotted a suspicious boat six miles off the coast of Odesa. There were four people on board, who were immediately returned to shore.

The organizer was chosen as a measure of restraint in the form of detention with the possibility of bail. Law enforcers are checking his involvement in document forgery and identifying other persons who may have been involved in the criminal scheme.

Recently, on the Odesa-Reni highway, a minibus driver was stopped who was trying to deliver three men of military age to the border with Moldova.

Intent also wrote about how the military terrorist defense in Odesa made conscripts mentally ill.

Андрій Колісніченко