Three members of the group and the organiser of a series of arson attacks on vehicles of the Armed Forces of Ukraine and other Ukrainian defence forces in several regions of Ukraine were exposed. They were detained as a result of a special operation in Kherson, Odesa and Mykolayiv and served with a notice of suspicion.
This was reported by the Prosecutor General's Office and the SBU.
A native of Henichesk was in contact with a currently unidentified person and organised the execution of his orders aimed at destroying the cars of Ukrainian defenders. The enemy's priority targets were military pick-up trucks involved in combat missions.
The group's coordinator was a former prisoner from Kherson Region who had previously served a sentence for drug trafficking. He involved his partner and two other criminals he met while in prison in the illegal activity.
The defendants received money for each completed task. The crimes were carefully prepared and committed at night. First, they scouted the locations of potential targets, and then committed arsons and recorded them on a mini-video camera.
Law enforcement documented the arson attacks on at least five cars in Kherson, Mykolayiv and Odesa.
SBU officers detained the group's leader and his partner in Odesa, and two of the arsonists in Kherson.
According to the investigation, the organiser of the criminal group came to the attention of the FSB while he was still in prison. After his release, a representative of the Russian special service contacted the former prisoner remotely and offered him cooperation for money.
The offenders are in custody. They face up to eight years in prison.