Donetsk Oblast enlistment office head charged with corruption, aiding criminals

The State Bureau of Investigation (DBR) announced on Aug. 4 that the head of the Donetsk Oblast military enlistment office had been charged with illegal payments to his subordinates and helping criminals avoid justice.

The official, while in charge of the Zaporizhzhia Oblast military enlistment office between July and December 2022, oversaw a scheme where his subordinates to whom he was personally connected received an unjustified allowance for participating in combat.

The official's subordinates were sent to a brigade near the front line, but did not carry out any tasks nor were assigned to a combat unit. In spite of that, the enlistment office awarded them a total allowance of Hr 981,300 (over $26,600) for combat deployment, the DBR clarified.

One of the subordinates further received the support of Hr 700,000 (up to $19,000) for being allegedly unable to work due to the battlefield deployment, the investigators said.

As a second charge, the DBR accused the military official of employing local criminals at the enlistment office to help them avoid trial and responsibility for their crimes.

The DBR did not name the suspect, but the current head of the Donetsk Oblast military enlistment office is Colonel Hennadii Yaremenko.

Ukrainian authorities launched a country-wide inspection of military enlistment offices after an investigation by Ukrainska Pravda revealed that Yevhen Borysov, the former head of the Odesa Oblast military enlistment office, had acquired assets, including a villa and luxury cars, worth $4.5 million in Spain at the end of 2022 during Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine.

Borysov is under investigation for illicit enrichment and the violation of the order of military service.

On July 27, the DBR detained the head of the Rivne Oblast enlistment office and one of his subordinates for physically abusing soldiers. The subordinate was also charged with possession of illegal narcotic substances.

A military enlistment officer in Zakarpattia Oblast is under investigation for forcing soldiers to build his private house and acquiring Russian state symbols, the Interior Ministry reported on Aug. 2.