Law enforcement authorities have charged two residents of Podilsk with aiding a conscript from Kyiv in illegally crossing the state border of Ukraine. The court has imposed preventive measures on the suspects, who face imprisonment and possible confiscation of property.

According to the press service of the Odesa regional police, a 34-year-old man and his 27-year-old partner conspired with an unidentified individual to transport a 30-year-old Kyiv resident to Transnistria. The man asked a relative with a car to drive him and the client to a border settlement without revealing his intentions. Meanwhile, the woman took a taxi to coordinate the client’s further movement across the border. The Kyiv resident had previously transferred her $800 as part of the payment.

Law enforcement halted the operation 500 meters from the border with Transnistria. Border guards filed a report against the conscript who intended to illegally cross the state border, as per the administrative code of Ukraine. He faces a fine or administrative arrest.

The police detained the man and woman who assisted him and confiscated the vehicle used for transport. Based on gathered evidence, the investigators charged the suspects with aiding illegal border crossing, which is classified under the criminal code of Ukraine, carrying a potential sentence of up to nine years in prison.

The court has imposed preventive measures: the man is held in custody with the option of posting bail of 120,000 hryvnias, while the woman is under round-the-clock house arrest. The full circle of individuals involved in this scheme is currently being established.