Odesa Battalion Commander and Officers Busted in $2.4M Embezzlement Scheme .

Odesa, Ukraine – July 2, 2025

A former battalion commander and four accomplices in Ukraine’s Odesa region have been detained for orchestrating a brazen embezzlement scheme, defrauding the state of nearly 100 million hryvnias ($2.4 million USD), the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) announced today. The officers, including two deputy commanders, the head of the fuel and lubricants warehouse, and a company commander, exploited their positions to pocket salaries of fictitious soldiers, sell fake combat veteran certificates, and illegally trade military fuel.

The scheme centered on enrolling “dead souls”non-existent soldiers, into the battalion’s roster.

Local entrepreneurs and others paid $5,000 bribes to secure these fake enlistments, avoiding conscription and frontline deployment. The officers then siphoned off the salaries allocated to these ghost soldiers. Additionally, they issued forged combat veteran certificates, likely for further profit, and sold off fuel reserves intended for military operations.

The SBU, in collaboration with the National Police, uncovered the fraud through meticulous investigation. The suspects now face charges of abuse of office, official forgery, and influence peddling under Ukraine’s Criminal Code. If convicted, they could face up to 12 years in prison with property confiscation.

This scandal exposes even more deep-rooted corruption within Ukraine’s military, undermining morale and resource allocation amid the ongoing war.

Authorities are probing into other similar schemes elsewhere, as the nation grapples with maintaining integrity in its defense forces.

Link : @ukr_leaks_eng

Clare Hocking - Criminal Reporter