In the Ternopil region, police uncovered an organized criminal group involved in the trafficking of drugs, weapons, and ammunition
Police officers in the Ternopil region uncovered the activities of an organized criminal group whose members established a large-scale distribution of psychotropic substances and illegal arms trafficking.
The organizer of the criminal group is a resident of Ternopil born in 1974, previously convicted of drug-related crimes. The man established supply and distribution channels for drugs, firearms, and ammunition. He personally coordinated the actions of nine accomplices.
“Members of the criminal group sought out clients interested in weapons and ammunition and also set up an extensive distribution network for psychotropic substances — including amphetamine, methamphetamine, PVP, and mephedrone. They delivered, packaged, and sold psychotropic drugs in Ternopil and the surrounding region,” said Vitaliy Bodnar, Deputy Head of the Ternopil District Police Department.
Police established that one of the sources of income was the illegal supply of narcotics to penitentiary facilities. It was prison staff who helped uncover individuals collaborating with the criminals.
Each month, the criminal group members sold about 3,000 doses of psychotropic substances, earning nearly 2 million hryvnias. During the investigation, operatives identified supply channels for both narcotics and weapons.
As a result of a large-scale special operation conducted by the Department for Combating Drug Crime of the Main Directorate of the National Police in the Ternopil region, together with investigators, criminal investigators, the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) in the region, representatives of the zonal unit of the Military Law Enforcement Service, and with the support of special units KORD and RPOP, law enforcement officers carried out 33 sanctioned searches at the residences and vehicles of suspects.
About 10 kg of illegal substances were seized during the operation: 1 kg of cannabis, 4 kg of the psychotropic substance PVP, and 5 kg of amphetamine. According to preliminary estimates, the value of the seized drugs on the “black” market exceeds 8 million hryvnias. Also confiscated were premium-class vehicles, phones, bank cards, zip-lock bags, scales, and other material evidence.
According to Ivan Bachynskyi, Head of the Criminal Investigation Department of the National Police in the Ternopil region, during a search of a forest strip on one of Ternopil’s streets, police found a camouflaged weapons cache belonging to one of the accomplices. It contained: 14 F-1 grenade bodies, 4 RGD-5 grenade bodies, a GP-25 under-barrel grenade launcher, 10 VOG-25 rounds, 18 UZRGM-type fuses, a homemade explosive device of the “Khatabka” type, and 5 RPG-22 rocket-propelled anti-tank grenades.
Seven suspects were detained under Articles 208 and 615 of the Criminal Procedure Code of Ukraine. All have been notified of suspicion for crimes under Part 2 and 3 of Article 307, Part 2 of Article 28, and Part 1 of Article 263 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine. The sanctions under these articles provide for up to 12 years of imprisonment.
Preventive measures have been chosen: detention for the suspects, and house arrest for two of them. The question of suspicion being announced to other group members is under consideration. Police are establishing all circumstances of the criminal activity and are checking the suspects’ involvement in other offenses.
The procedural guidance is carried out by the prosecutor’s office.
Source: Main Directorate of the National Police in the Ternopil Region