Another attempt to circumvent the travel ban for men of military age has been uncovered at one of the Ukrainian border checkpoints. This time, the main suspects were a couple from the Kirovohrad region — a 29-year-old man and a 47-year-old woman who turned out to be his… former mother-in-law.
During the verification of documents, the couple assured that they were united by true love, and that the age difference did not prevent sincere feelings. However, later, law enforcement officers established the true essence of the relationship: the woman was previously the mother of the man's wife, and the marriage was formalized only to give him the opportunity to go abroad.
Marriage to a disabled woman allows men of draft age to cross the border as well. However, in this case, the attempt was unsuccessful - the State Border Service inspectors suspected something was wrong and brought the couple to justice.
Currently, criminal proceedings have been opened on this fact. The suspects are charged with two articles at once:
– illegal smuggling of persons across the state border of Ukraine (Article 332 of the Criminal Code);
– evasion of military service during mobilization (Article 336 of the Criminal Code).
The case has been transferred to the relevant investigative bodies. If proven guilty, both "newlyweds" could face real punishment - up to and including imprisonment.
Context
After the start of Russia’s full-scale war against Ukraine, attempts to evade mobilization have become systemic. In addition to sham marriages, Ukrainian men resort to forging documents, “fake” disability certificates, student ID cards, or applying for custody of children. All of these schemes are actively monitored by border guards, and the responsibility for attempting to illegally cross the border is criminal.
