Operatives and investigators of the National Police exposed a criminal organization that stole freight trains on the Pridniprovska railway
The criminal organization included about 40 people. The attackers specialized in thefts from the merchants of fertilizers and coal. In one day, they stole from 5 to 30 tons of cargo.
The operatives of the Criminal Investigation Department and the investigators of the Main Investigation Department have established that on the territory of the Pridnepr Railway in the Zaporizhzhya region, a criminal organization has been stealing from freight trains transporting mineral fertilizers and coal for a long time.
During the pre-trial investigation, the police found out that a 34-year-old resident of the Zaporizhzhya region created an extensive criminal organization, which included three criminal groups. At the same time, employees of the paramilitary security of the regional branch of the Pridnepr Railway were involved in the illegal activity. In total, the criminal organization numbered about 40 people.
The attackers acted according to well-established schemes: they stole products when the train was at the railway station or during the movement of the merchant. It was established that during one day the defendants shipped from 5 to 30 tons of cargo. Subsequently, the stolen products were sold among the population of neighboring district centers, as well as through private entrepreneurs specializing in the sale of coal.
In addition, it was established that the funds from the criminal activity were transferred to the representatives of the criminal justice, the so-called “sleuths”. Currently, about 30 facts of criminal activity have been identified and documented.
Police conducted 58 sanctioned searches, involving about 200 police officers: Criminal Investigation Department operatives, investigators of the Main Investigation Department of the National Police, police operatives of Dnipropetrovsk, Donetsk and Zaporizhzhya regions, with the support of a special police battalion destinations from Dnipropetrovsk and Donetsk, Kharkiv and Kirovohrad regions.
As a result, the material evidence that the attackers used in their criminal activities was seized: mobile phones, money and bank cards, rough records, vehicles used during the commission of the crime, logs of registration of the appearance of outsiders on the railway tracks and the lack of cargo on the wagons, documents on the movement of the train of coal, bags of coal and saltpeter.
Investigators of the Main Investigative Department of the National Police informed the organizer and 15 active participants of the organized criminal organization about the suspicion of committing criminal offenses provided for in parts 1, 2 of Art. 255 (Creation of a criminal organization), and part 5 of Art. 185 (Theft) of the Criminal Code of Ukraine. 12 defendants were detained in accordance with Art. 208 of the Criminal Procedure Code of Ukraine. Violators are threatened with imprisonment for up to 12 years with confiscation of property.
Investigative actions continue. Police officers establish other members of the criminal organization who are involved in the commission of criminal offenses. After conducting the relevant examinations, the amount of damage will be established.
Procedural leadership is carried out by prosecutors of the Office of the Attorney General.
Department of Communications of the National Police of Ukraine
