Ukrainian special services, including counterintelligence from the Security Service and the National Police, in collaboration with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, have discovered a fraudulent scheme that allowed Russian citizens to obtain legal status in EU countries.
As a result of the investigation, an advisor from one of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs departments was arrested for selling Ukrainian passports to several Russians for travel to the EU in 2022.
The scheme operated during the initial months of the large-scale invasion when the suspect served as the second secretary for consular affairs at the Ukrainian embassy in a European country.
While at the diplomatic mission, the official accepted requests from Russians who wanted to enter the EU without hindrance and travel freely within its borders.
According to the case materials, for a fee, the official was granting his clients Ukrainian citizenship and issuing them Ukrainian foreign passports.
To find clients, he used a network of intermediaries located in the EU who were in contact with citizens of the aggressor country.
Currently, information is being verified regarding the involvement of the legalized Russians in the intelligence and subversive activities of Russian special services.
During searches, a mobile phone containing evidence of his illegal activities was seized from the suspect.
The official has been notified of suspicion under part 2 of Article 332 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine (illegal transportation of persons across the state border of Ukraine committed by a public official using official position).
The issue of preventive measures against the suspect is being resolved. The investigation is ongoing with the full cooperation of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
The offender faces up to seven years in prison. These actions were carried out under the procedural leadership of the Office of the Prosecutor General of Ukraine.