Seven Kherson police officers charged with extortion and falsification

Seven police officers from Kherson region will stand trial for planting explosives, falsifying evidence and extorting money during searches. Investigators believe that they acted in an organized scheme during 2024-2025.

This was reported by the press service of the Prosecutor General's Office.

The prosecutor's office has sent an indictment to the court against seven officers of the National Police of Kherson region who are accused of falsifying evidence, unlawful interference with privacy, and extortion during searches.

According to the investigation, during 2024-2025, the group acted according to a certain scheme. They provided false information about the alleged involvement of citizens in crimes, obtained court permits for searches, and during the searches, law enforcement officers planted drugs, explosives or ammunition and recorded it as "found evidence".

In some cases, the defendants demonstrated prohibited items before the search began, threatened criminal liability, and demanded money for a "quiet" search without recording violations. They also documented the illegal installation of devices for listening and recording conversations in a citizen's car without a court order.

The activities of the organized group were terminated in July 2025. The indictment was sent to court under a number of articles of the Criminal Code of Ukraine, including falsification of evidence, abuse of power and illegal handling of weapons.

In January, a scheme to counterfeit driver's licenses through driving schools and service centers of the Ministry of Internal Affairs in southern Ukraine was uncovered in Kherson. The offenders received from 2 to 11 thousand hryvnias for fictitious completion of training and guaranteed passing of exams.

According to the investigation, the scheme was organized by a former law enforcement officer who involved a group of accomplices among employees of service centers in Kherson, Mykolaiv and Odesa regions, as well as directors of driving schools and unidentified persons.

Анна Бальчінос