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On 03 December 2024, in Odesa, investigators served a notice of suspicion to six members of a criminal group who extorted money from prisoners of the Odesa Pre-Trial Prison.
The group was led by a ‘thief in law’ who is currently wanted. One of the offenders was sentenced to life imprisonment. His accomplices face a considerable term of imprisonment with confiscation of property.
Law enforcement officers identified the offenders as four foreigners and two Ukrainians aged 32 to 43. All of them had been previously convicted and taken into custody by the Odesa police for committing new crimes.
One of the foreigners, who was sentenced to life imprisonment for murder and robbery, was drawn into the sphere of influence of the ‘thief in law’ and, as his trusted person (‘polozhenets’), extorted money from other dependents.
The criminal mastermind also involved his lower-ranking dependents in criminal activities, including thefts, robberies, assaults, illegal imprisonment, extortion, illegal handling of weapons, etc.
Members of the group took on informal functions of criminal authorities among prison inmates, extorting money from them under various false pretexts and thus filling the thieves’ “fund” (obschak).
For example, they forced one inmate to pay off a non-existent debt of $5,000, and another to pay $500 so that he would not be bullied because he had committed a crime under a ‘disreputable’ article in the criminal world.
The three offenders, who were granted bail by the court, were able to leave the pre-trial detention centre and were at large. Law enforcement officers conducted authorised searches at the defendants’ residences in Odesa and Mykolaiv, in the cars they used, and in the places of detention, and seized draft records, mobile phones, bank cards and other material evidence of illegal activity.
Currently, all six offenders have been served a notice of suspicion in accordance with their roles:
under Part 4 of Article 189 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine – extortion;
under Part 5 of Art. 255 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine – creation, management of a criminal community or criminal organisation, as well as participation in it;
under Part 2 of Article 255-1 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine – establishment or spreading of criminal influence.
The maximum penalty under these articles is 15 years’ imprisonment with confiscation of property.
The organiser of the criminal group is currently wanted.
Source, text, photo: Odesa Region National Police
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