In the Odesa region, an instructor at a cultural center promised to secure disability benefits for $15,000

In the Odesa region, an instructor at the Center for Culture, Leisure, and Sports of the Stepanivka Village Council is suspected of extorting $15,000 in exchange for influencing the issuance of a Group III disability certificate to a man of draft age. The Kyiv District Court of Odesa ordered him to be held in custody as a preventive measure, with the option of posting bail in the amount of 565,760 hryvnias.

The court issued the corresponding ruling on September 2, 2026.

According to the case file, the man allegedly decided to profit by influencing officials on the expert team responsible for assessing a person’s daily functioning at the Military Medical Clinical Center of the Southern Region. This involved preparing medical documents containing false information, on the basis of which men of draft age could be granted disability status to avoid mobilization.

According to investigators, no later than August, he met with a man near the train station in Rozdilna and claimed that he could influence the expert panel to have his relative classified as having a Group III disability.

The cost of this “service” was 15,000 U.S. dollars. According to the court order, 14,000 was to be paid as an advance, and another 1,000 after receiving the necessary documents. Following this conversation, the man contacted law enforcement and agreed to cooperate with the investigation.

According to the investigation, the suspect also spoke about the possibility of obtaining disability status by including false information about inpatient treatment in the documents. He allegedly cited his connections among officials at the medical center.

On August 31, the suspect met with the complainant near the “U Rubena” café in Rozdilna. The complainant handed him 14,000 dollars, after which the man was detained by law enforcement. The court order states that, at the exchange rate on that date, the amount transferred amounted to 623,707 hryvnias.

The court found the suspicion to be well-founded and identified risks of the suspect potentially absconding or influencing witnesses. At the same time, the court specifically noted that at this stage it is not establishing the man’s guilt, but merely assessing the validity of the suspicion and the necessity of a preventive measure.

The man was remanded in custody through October 26, 2026. He may be released on bail in the amount of 565,760 hryvnias. In that case, he will be prohibited from leaving the locality without permission, from communicating with witnesses, and will be required to surrender his passports for travel abroad.

Андрій Колісніченко