Ukraine exposes 600 criminal groups smuggling draft dodgers abroad

This was reported by Andrii Demchenko, the spokesperson for the State Border Guard Service of Ukraine, on Espreso TV.

"Recently, a large group of men was detained in the southern region while attempting to reach the border and smuggle into Moldova. Our job is to uncover these schemes, along with the organizers and criminal groups promising illegal border crossings. Since martial law was imposed, we’ve already exposed over 600 such groups, including their organizers and accomplices. These actions carry criminal penalties. Although the number of illegal crossings decreased in August, the trend is still noticeable. We hope this trend continues. Additionally, the fall and winter months will bring harsher weather conditions, which are less favorable for illegal border crossings," he said.

According to Demchenko, there have even been cases where men tried to leave Ukraine by marrying women with disabilities.

“It sometimes happens that men marry their former mother-in-law, for example. When men between the ages of 18 and 60 travel abroad, border guards carefully check the conditions of their departure. Of course, a man has the right to cross the border if he is accompanying his wife who has a disability. However, when verifying this information, they consider all relevant details: when the marriage was concluded and other aspects of both the man’s and the woman’s lives beforehand. If a man is married to a mother-in-law or another woman with a disability, but they are not related by blood, it could mean that the woman is involved in illegally transporting a man across the border. This could lead to criminal charges against the woman. Therefore, do not abuse the border crossing rules. Every day, border guards continue to uncover forged documents as men attempt to leave Ukraine. Fortunately, the number of forgeries is lower than in 2023,” he added.

• MP Liudmyla Marchenko was expelled from the Servant of the People party after being served with a NABU suspicion of influence peddling and receiving undue advantage.