National Police Operation: Drug Cartel Disruption
The National Police of Ukraine has executed a comprehensive operation consisting of two phases to dismantle a criminal organization that was involved in financial schemes to launder profits from illegal drug trade. The criminals were distributing precursors for the mass production of amphetamine. The drugs were shipped through postal services or using so-called "drops". This enabled a network of 18 drug laboratories operating across six regions of Ukraine. Each month, these labs produced over 60 kg of amphetamine, generating profits of up to 18 million hryvnias.
This was reported by the press service of the National Police.
Law enforcement agencies uncovered the criminal organization engaged in precursor sales. The group's leader was responsible for the continuous supply of raw materials for amphetamine production. His subordinates packaged the drugs daily in rented apartments, changing locations every two weeks. They sent precursors to drug labs via mail or through “drops,” using disposable SIM cards that were destroyed after use.
Additionally, police identified a separate group involved in laundering proceeds in Kyiv. They sought out individuals willing to provide their information for opening bank accounts in exchange for compensation, creating personal accounts in mobile apps where millions of hryvnias from illegal precursor sales were funneled. As a result, over a thousand fictitious individuals were involved, from whose accounts more than 200 million hryvnias were funneled into two cryptocurrency wallets, which were later cashed out in Cyprus.
To dismantle the drug cartel, more than 300 police officers from Ternopil, Khmelnytskyi, Lviv, Kyiv, Mykolaiv, Sumy, Chernihiv, Odesa regions, and Kyiv city were involved, supported by the special forces and the State Border Guard Service.
During the operation, more than 100 searches were carried out in ten regions and the capital, during which elite cars, over $80,000 in various currencies, 60 kg of cannabis, 7 kg of “a-PVP,” 3.5 kg of amphetamine, 900 units of “MDMA,” a batch of fictitious bank accounts, and SIM cards were seized, along with other evidence of criminal activity.
Investigators gathered sufficient evidence and announced suspicions against sixteen members of the drug cartel. Depending on their level of participation, they are charged under the following articles of the Criminal Code of Ukraine:
- Part 2 of Article 255 (Creation, leadership of a criminal community or criminal organization, as well as participation in it);
- Part 3 of Article 307 (Illegal production, manufacture, acquisition, storage, transportation, shipping or sale of narcotic drugs, psychotropic substances or their analogues);
- Part 3 of Article 311 (Illegal production, manufacture, acquisition, storage, transportation, or shipping of precursors);
- Part 3 of Article 209 (Legalization (money laundering) of property obtained by criminal means)
According to the charges, the suspects face up to 12 years in prison with confiscation of property.
