An organized criminal group engaged in illegal deforestation in the Zakarpattia region of Ukraine has been exposed. According to the State Bureau of Investigation (SBI), the amount of damage caused to the state amounted to more than UAH 12 million. This criminal scheme was carried out with the help of forged documents, which allowed the participants to conceal their illegal actions.
The head of this criminal group was the head of one of the forestry enterprises in Zakarpattia, who gave illegal orders for deforestation. His subordinates actively falsified documents, creating the appearance of legal activity. Such documents allowed deforestation on the territory of the Brusturyansky forestry and hunting enterprise, one of the most beautiful areas of Transcarpathia, which led to significant environmental and economic losses.
The investigation conducted by the National Police and the Prosecutor's Office of Ukraine not only exposed this large-scale scheme, but also revealed specific acts of document forgery. The SBI specialists responded quickly to the discovered facts and conducted operational and investigative actions that led to the detention of the members of the criminal group.
The data on each of the participants of the scheme has been precisely established, and now all of them have been suspected of committing serious criminal offenses. According to law enforcement officials, all suspects are currently in custody and await trial.
These actions were made possible due to the effective cooperation of various law enforcement agencies, which allowed to quickly stop criminal activity and minimize losses. The members of the organized group could be imprisoned for up to 10 years, which is the maximum penalty for such crimes under Ukrainian law.
This case is an important precedent for combating illegal logging in Ukraine. It shows that law enforcement agencies are able to effectively combat environmental crimes that not only damage national resources but also harm future generations.
