The organizer of the crime faces up to twelve years in prison with asset confiscation, while his four accomplices face up to five years of imprisonment.
According to law enforcement, five local residents aged between 23 and 43 were involved in the crime, with a 31-year-old native of Donetsk acting as the organizer, who has been residing in Kyiv for a long time.
The criminals had previously arranged a meeting in a café with a 24-year-old former employee, after which they assaulted him and forcibly took him to an office where they seized his bag, mobile phone, and wristwatch. Subsequently, under psychological pressure and threats, they demanded the man pay a fictitious debt of $50,000.
As a result of a special operation conducted by investigators from the Pechersk Police Department together with operatives from the Strategic Investigations Department, all participants were detained under Article 208 of the Criminal Procedure Code of Ukraine in the office where the victim was held against his will.
The police conducted a series of authorized searches at the homes, vehicles of the suspects, and in the office, seizing around $30,000, computer equipment, and five luxury cars: BMW, Mercedes, Toyota, Infiniti.
Investigators, under the procedural guidance of the Pechersk District Prosecutor's Office, notified four suspects of charges under Part 2 of Article 146 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine – illegal deprivation of liberty for mercenary motives, committed by a group of persons in conspiracy, while the organizer was charged under Part 4 of Article 189 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine – extortion with threats of violence against the victim, committed by a group of persons in conspiracy under martial law.
Upon the request of the investigators, the court chose a preventive measure for the organizer in the form of non-alternative detention, while other participants were placed in custody with the right to bail. The suspects face up to five years in prison, while the organizer faces up to twelve years with asset confiscation.
Kyiv Police Communications Department
