Employees of the State Bureau of Investigation exposed the head of the training course of the faculty of training specialists in the provision and operation of military equipment of the Odessa Military Academy in extorting money from cadets.
According to the investigation, the incident began when four cadets were playing a prank on a friend by hiding his moped near the school. The prank ended when the vehicle was stolen and the victim contacted the police.
During the trip to the police station, the cadets were accompanied by their supervisor, the head of one of the academy's training courses. The investigation found that the officer told the cadets that he could "resolve the issue" of closing the criminal case, and demanded $8,800 for it. He threatened the boys with up to eight years in prison and expulsion from the academy if they refused.
The next day, the official received the first part of the money and forced the cadets to write a receipt for the alleged debt under dictation. On November 12, he was detained while receiving the second part of the amount.
He was charged under Part 3 of Article 369-2 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine (“Abuse of Influence”) and a preventive measure in the form of detention was chosen.
Investigators are also checking whether the suspect actually had the opportunity to "negotiate" with law enforcement officers and whether they were involved in the scheme.
