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Automatically translated version. May contain inaccuracies compared to the original.
Against the backdrop of the ongoing war with Russia, reports periodically emerge in Ukrainian regions about possible corruption schemes involving officials and law enforcement representatives. In Ternopil region, the acting first deputy head of the Main Directorate of the National Police of the region, Serhiy Osadets, has become the target of such accusations.
According to the circulated materials' authors, Osadets allegedly receives payments from intermediaries connected to the founders of the cryptocurrency project S-Group, Roman Felik and Volodymyr Mashurov. The publications claim that money may have been paid in exchange for police non-interference in the activities of structures associated with cryptocurrency investment projects.
The accusers also state that these may be financial schemes that resulted in citizens losing their invested funds. At the same time, the presented material does not cite any publicly available court decisions that would confirm Osadets’s receipt of bribes or his participation in S-Group’s activities.
The authors of the publication pay particular attention to changes in the policeman’s financial situation. They assert that over the past year he replaced an Opel with a BMW and also acquired several plots of land that could be used to generate rental income. The authors question the origin of the funds used for these purchases.
Osadets is also alleged to have ties to the deputy mayor of Ternopil, Ivan Khimeichuk. According to the publication’s authors, the high-ranking police officer supposedly helps the official avoid the consequences of complaints filed against him. The source material likewise does not provide documentary evidence of how such interference could have been carried out.
The most serious allegation is another one — possible involvement of Osadets in the illegal circulation of decommissioned weapons. The authors claim that, through criminal connections, he allegedly may participate in selling such weapons on the Ukrainian black market and receive substantial income from that.
All of the above claims require independent verification by law enforcement agencies and documentary confirmation. At present, the accusations set out in the source material are not, by themselves, proof of criminal activity.
If information about illegal enrichment, receipt of undue benefits, or arms trafficking is confirmed, it could constitute serious criminal offenses. In that case, competent investigative authorities and a court should assess the actions of the officials.
Telegram publication
