In Zakarpattia region, former orphanage teacher attempting to sell child sentenced to 10 years in prison
A court in the Zakarpattia region sentenced a former foster care facility teacher to 10 years in prison with confiscation of property for attempting to sell an 11-month-old boy abroad under the guise of adoption.
According to Ukrinform, the Zakarpattia Regional Prosecutor’s Office reported this.
“Prosecutors proved in court that the convicted man, who previously worked as a teacher at a foster care facility, attempted to organize the illegal removal of an 11-month-old boy abroad under the guise of adoption. In total, he expected to earn about $25,000," the statement reads.
According to law enforcement, the suspect found a woman in Zhytomyr who faced difficult life circumstances and agreed that for $5,000, she would give her son up for so-called adoption to Spain.
“He met with the potential victim twice and took photos of the boy during their conversations to show him to potential clients,” the prosecutor’s office stated.
The man gathered the necessary documents, instructed the woman on border crossing procedures, and accompanied her and the child to a border crossing point in the Zakarpattia region.
Law enforcement officers detained him in June 2023 at the Mali Selmentsi border crossing while he was attempting to cross the border with the child.
He has been in custody ever since.
The Uzhhorod City and District Court found the defendant guilty under Part 2 of Article 15 and Part 3 of Article 149 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine (attempted human trafficking involving a minor).
The prosecutor’s office reported that in June 2025, this man had already been convicted of embezzling over 6.3 million hryvnias in state aid intended for the family of a deceased serviceman. As the godfather of the fallen soldier, he gained the family’s trust, secretly transferred funds to his own accounts, and spent them on his personal needs.
As reported by Ukrinform, in 2023, law enforcement officers detained a resident of the Zakarpattia region who attempted to smuggle a child into a European Union country and sell the child for $25,000.