Senior National Guard officers arrested for embezzling nearly $380,000 in combat bonuses
Read NV on Google
The Security
Service of Ukraine (SBU), in collaboration with the State Bureau of
Investigations, has exposed an illicit
scheme involving the embezzlement of combat bonuses by senior National
Guard officers, the agency announced on Aug. 15.
The allegedly crooked commanders amassed an approximate total of 14 million hryvnias ($380,000) from February to August 2022.
They are accused of improperly granting a monthly bonus of $2,700 (100,000 hryvnias) to themselves and their subordinates. This bonus was supposed to be provided to service personnel involved in combat operations against the Russian invaders.
The individuals reportedly involved in the criminal scheme never entered conflict zones nor carried out any tasks at the front.
The SBU has not named those involved, instead noting that the figures include the division commander, the commander of the 3rd battalion, the head of the personnel accounting department, the deputy commander of the 1st battalion, and a company commander of a National Guard division.
The suspects have been charged with neglect of military service, which carries a maximum penalty of eight years in prison.
Previously, the SBU reported that it had dismantled a similar corruption scheme at a training center for National Guard units in Kyiv Oblast.
Officials at the center were unjustifiably awarding themselves and their subordinates the same monthly bonus for combat operations.
The individuals involved were also charged with neglect of military service.
The military war may be swinging in our favor, but the information war continues.
Just as an army needs soldiers, so does a free society need its journalists to ensure that people have access to honest, trustworthy voices to understand the world around them.
For the past five years, The New Voice of Ukraine has been working tirelessly to push back against Russian narratives and defend democracy. But we cannot do it alone.
Please consider supporting us on Patreon for just $5 a month – your donation does directly to supporting journalists and ensuring that this front of the infowar says solid and defended.
Thank you.
Follow us on Twitter, Facebook and Google News
