Ukrainian Lawmaker Suspected of Abetting Draft-Dodgers

A member of Ukraine’s parliament, the Verkhovna Rada, is under suspicion for abetting the illegal flight of conscription age men.

Ukraine’s Security Service (SBU) and the State Bureau of Investigation (DBR) have gathered evidence against a parliamentarian suspected of organizing an illegal scheme to send Ukrainian men of conscription age abroad, according to an announcement made on Nov. 3 by the SBU's press service on Facebook.

Although the SBU has not disclosed the name of the parliamentarian involved, photographs released by the agency show a blurred face, which appears to be that of non-factional lawmaker Oleksander Dubinsky.

Dubinsky subsequently confirmed the suspicions against him on Telegram, stating that the DBR had informed him of the charges. He believes the case is related to his criticism of President Vladimir Zelensky and the President’s chief of staff, Andriy Yermak.

On Nov. 3, the SBU gave formal notice of suspicion, pertaining to the alleged illegal transfer of individuals across the state border. The crime carries a penalty of up to seven years in prison.

According to the investigation, the MP managed to facilitate the illegal departure of his wife’s brother to a neighboring European country.

The SBU reports that he used a controlled public organization, Mediaoborona, to bring “the right people” into the Shlyakh system as “volunteers,” the report says. The Shlyakh system is a means by which military age men obtain permission to travel abroad during martial law.

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The service ranged from $7,000 to $12,000 per conscript, and the suspects offered to remove the draft dodgers from military registration based on fake medical reports.

During the searches, the SBU seized flash drives, mobile phones, seals, letters, contracts, and other documents used to manipulate the Shlyakh system with false information.

The director of the public organization, whom Dubinsky purportedly engaged, was issued a notice of suspicion.

The SBU has stated that they are currently determining the appropriate preventive measures for the defendants, and the pre-trial investigation is ongoing.