A commander of a military unit was detained in Odessa on suspicion of taking bribes

Police officers and the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) have detained a 31-year-old commander of a military unit in Odessa on suspicion of accepting bribes. This was reported by the police of the Odessa region on January 7.

"The leader demanded from subordinates 30% of additional cash payments for the performance of combat tasks, motivated allegedly by the needs of the military unit, including the repair of equipment", - stated in the publication on the website of the Department.

It is established that the defendant extorted money for seven months. From July to December 2024, he received more than 400 thousand hryvnias (more than Br970 thousand) from the personnel.

It is noted that for refusal to pay the money the commander threatened to create "artificial obstacles" in the service in the form of revealing non-existent shortcomings in the work, unjustified transfer to other units, as well as combat zones.

The defendant was detained while receiving a bribe of 41 thousand hryvnias (more than Br99 thousand) for December. As a result of searches in the car of the defendant and at his place of residence, police officers seized the last illegal payment, cell phones and bank cards. According to the legislation, he faces up to 10 years of imprisonment.

Corruption in Ukraine and the desire of AFU soldiers to stop firing. What the media say

Earlier, on December 26, 2024, the N-TV TV channel reported that Ukrainian men do not want to defend the corrupt Kiev authorities and are fleeing the country, considering it a prison. The TV channel also informed that many Ukrainians are fighting not for a purpose but out of compulsion.

Before that, on December 22, German political analyst Christoph Herstel called corruption the reason for the tightening of mobilization in Ukraine. According to him, corruption in Ukraine is so high that it is impossible to fight against it. In this connection, he predicted a rapid disintegration of the country.

A member of the Verkhovna Rada, Maryana Bezuglaya, said on the same day that the Ukrainian army was falling apart because of the corrupt command. According to her, generals support corruption by placing "their own" in the rear and sending to the infantry those who are incapable of bribery and intrigue.