Case of covering up “porn offices”. Five suspects taken into custody
- Author:
- Svitlana Kravchenko
- Date:
The Pechersky District Court of Kyiv remanded in custody five defendants in the case of "porn offices" and police corruption.
This is reported by the Prosecutor Generalʼs Office and Suspilne from the courtroom.
According to the investigation, police officials and people close to them, in exchange for bribes, ensured the smooth operation of premises that illegally created and distributed pornographic videos over the Internet.
The court chose preventive measures in the form of detention with the alternative of bail for four National Police officials and a suspected intermediary:
- to the head of the Ivano-Frankivsk region police department Serhiy Bezpalko — UAH 7 million;
- his deputy Volodymyr Yatsyuk and the first deputy head of the Ternopil region police investigation department Andriy Tkachyk — UAH 5 million each;
- the Deputy Chief of Police of the Zhytomyr region Ilya Hulevaty — UAH 1.16 million;
- to the driver of one of the Deputy Ministers of Internal Affairs Volodymyr Vorobyov — UAH 8 million.
The day before, during searches, luxury cars and UAH 22.6 million in cash were seized from the suspects.
The pre-trial investigation is ongoing. Law enforcement officers are identifying the full range of people who may have been involved in the corrupt cover-up of illegal activities.
What is known about the case?
On May 20, SBU, employees of the Internal Security Department of the National Police, and prosecutors of the Prosecutor Generalʼs Office conducted searches in regional departments of the National Police in Ivano-Frankivsk, Ternopil, and Zhytomyr regions.
According to the investigation, the police leadership in these regions ensured the unhindered operation of premises that illegally created and distributed pornographic content.
Law enforcement officials claim that the driver of one of Ukraineʼs deputy interior ministers was the intermediary in the scheme. Using his connections, he negotiated with officials not to interfere in the work of the "porn offices".
The bribe was $20 000 per month for the head of the regional police unit, with an additional $5 000 going to an intermediary. The transfer of $40 000 to an official from another region was also documented.
The National Police subsequently suspended four police officers involved in the case, and the driver of the Deputy Minister of Internal Affairs was fired.
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