Kyiv police bust interregional cocaine trafficking ring, seize drugs worth UAH 8M
Operatives of the National Police of Ukraine in Kyiv have dismantled an interregional cocaine trafficking network, serving notices of suspicion to four individuals and seizing drugs worth nearly UAH 8 million.
That is according to the Kyiv Main Directorate of the National Police, Ukrinform reports.
"Participants in the drug trafficking operation have now been notified of suspicion under Part 3 of Article 307 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine – illegal purchase, storage, and sale of narcotic substances in especially large quantities – as well as Part 2 of Article 309 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine," the statement said.
Police said they had spent several months documenting the group's criminal activities, identifying all members of the scheme and tracing supply routes.
Law enforcement officers also established that the organizer of the operation was a 40-year-old resident of Kryvyi Rih and a member of a local drug gang.
"He used a vehicle equipped with a specially designed hidden compartment to secretly transport cocaine from Kryvyi Rih to Kyiv, where he was met by an accomplice, a 43-year-old resident of the Kyiv region, who handled distribution of the 'product'," police said.
During a special operation, officers stopped the vehicle and carried out searches at the suspects' residences.
During the searches, officers seized about one kilogram of cocaine, electronic scales, mobile phones, and cash. The estimated street value of the confiscated drugs is around UAH 8 million.
Investigators also identified a wholesale cocaine buyer – a 35-year-old resident of the Kyiv region who resold the drugs – as well as one of his clients. All suspects were detained under Article 208 of Ukraine's Criminal Procedure Code.
"The court has already ordered pretrial detention for three suspects with the possibility of bail. The maximum penalty under the charges is up to 12 years in prison," the statement said.
The National Police of Ukraine earlier shut down a transnational drug trafficking channel from the European Union to Ukraine operated by a five-member group that earned nearly UAH 10 million per month.