Police Confirmed Opening of Proceedings Against U420, But Their Official Response “Forgot” About the MIA Expert Conclusion Received by Bihus.Info

The Bihus.Info editorial team received a response from law enforcement authorities regarding the U420 network.

In the journalists’ first response, the police stated that a criminal investigation into U420 had been opened as far back as July 2025 of that year. At the same time, the journalist Svitlana Stetsenko’s request to open an investigation into the dissemination of especially dangerous psychotropic substances through the U420 network, according to law enforcement, was “attached to” materials of an existing case.

In the second response, the National Police emphasizes the presumption of innocence and cites the position of the U420 network itself about its activities:

“We inform you that the establishment ‘U420’ positions itself as a network of CBD cafés and stores that operate, among other things, under a franchising model. In accordance with Article 62 of the Constitution of Ukraine, a person is considered innocent until proven guilty in the manner prescribed by law. The use of Cannabis plants for medical, scientific, and educational purposes is allowed provided that the content of tetrahydrocannabinol does not exceed 0,3%, in accordance with the Law of Ukraine. Advertising of stores or products that by their nature do not contain narcotic substances, psychotropic substances, or their analogs is not prohibited by law.”

The results of the Ministry of Internal Affairs’ laboratory examination, which detected an illegal psychotropic substance in samples of products from U410 stores, were not mentioned by law enforcement.

Recall that in the “souvenir” products sold by the U420 network, the forensic laboratory of the Ministry of Internal Affairs, which journalists of Bihus.Info obtained, confirmed the presence of an especially dangerous prohibited psychotropic substance. In such a case, by law, the National Police is obligated to open a criminal case.