SBI officers detained the commander of one of the military units in Rivne, who was forcing his subordinates to perform construction work in his private house in the Lviv region.
The officer involved three servicemen – two drivers and an electrician – in the illegal work. They worked on the repairs for over a year and a half, starting in March 2024. At the same time, “on paper” the soldiers remained at their deployment site in Rivne, and the state paid them a monthly stipend.
During this time, more than 1.3 million hryvnias were unjustifiably spent from the military unit's budget. During searches on September 17, 2025, law enforcement officers found two servicemen on site, another one has been serving in the Sumy region since July. In addition, they found certificates with which the commander awarded subordinates for "conscientious service," although they were actually working on the construction of his house.
The commander was detained and reported on suspicion under Part 2 of Article 28 Part 5 of Article 426-1 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine – abuse of power and authority by a military official under martial law, committed by prior conspiracy by a group of persons. The court chose for him a preventive measure – detention with the possibility of posting bail in the amount of UAH 1.3 million. The sanction of the article provides for up to 12 years of imprisonment.
