In Mykolaiv, the director of the shipping company Transas Ukraine LLC turned his own house into a real underground arsenal. Inside his apartment, law enforcement officers found dozens of military weapons, grenade launchers, grenade casings, and thousands of rounds of ammunition. The Central District Court of Mykolaiv found the man guilty, but released him from serving his sentence.
According to the investigation, in the fall of 2023, the company director knowingly purchased a large number of industrially manufactured military weapons without any permits. The list of items found included Kalashnikov assault rifles of various modifications, light machine guns, a GP-25 underbarrel grenade launcher, RPG-7V and RPG-22 anti-tank grenade launchers, as well as F-1, RGO, RGD-5 grenade cases with fuses. In addition, thousands of rounds of various calibers were seized.
On October 3, 2023, law enforcement officers conducted a search of the director's apartment. All weapons discovered during the investigation were seized, and the examination confirmed their suitability for shooting. The man was detained immediately after the search. He was remanded in custody with the right to post bail in the amount of 134.2 thousand hryvnias. After posting it, he was released from the pre-trial detention center.
During the trial, the accused pleaded guilty and expressed sincere remorse. The court took into account the absence of criminal records, positive characteristics and the presence of gratitude from military units, as well as a low risk of reoffending. As a result, the man was sentenced to three years in prison, but was released from serving the sentence with a probationary period of one year. If during this time he does not violate the law and fulfills his duties, he will not go to jail.
The court will also return the 134,200 hryvnias deposited to the bailor after the verdict becomes final. Three days of pretrial detention were counted towards the possible sentence. The accused will be charged over 37,000 hryvnias for forensic examinations, and all seized weapons will be handed over to the Armed Forces of Ukraine.
In Mykolaiv, a court sentenced another defendant in cases of illegal possession of weapons, a local serviceman. During searches of his apartment and garages, law enforcement officers found explosives, grenades, assault rifles, and thousands of rounds of ammunition. The man himself explained that he was collecting an arsenal “just in case.” He also received a sentence with exemption from actually serving his sentence.
