A resident of Lviv was sentenced to seven years in prison for promising to forge documents for leaving Ukraine.

The Pustomyty District Court of Lviv Oblast found Myroslav Bonchak, a resident of Lviv, guilty on February 17 of illegally smuggling people across the border and sentenced him to seven years in prison with confiscation of all property. The verdict states that the defendant promised military conscripts to produce documents allowing them to leave Ukraine for $2,000.

According to the case materials, on March 25, 2022, a man called Myroslav Bonchak, stating that he wanted to travel to Poland with a friend. The defendant informed him that he could help for $2,000 (58,500 UAH at the time). Bonchak met one of the men on March 30, 2022, at a gas station in Sokilnyky and said he could create documents declaring unfitness for military service, which would allow them to cross the border. The money was handed over to Myroslav Bonchak the same day. After that, he was detained by SBU officers.

In court, the defendant did not admit his guilt. He stated that in March 2022, he received a call from an unknown number asking for help with documents, but they did not specify which ones. Bonchak assumed that the callers were clients, as he was working at the "Diamond" salon, which sells cars at that time. He claimed that the conversation ended when he realized it was not about cars. According to Bonchak, the next day, the unknown caller continued to call him asking for assistance.

Myroslav Bonchak decided to take money from the military conscripts because he wanted to buy a car for $3,800 and resell it at a higher price. The defendant asserts that he planned to return the money to the men who intended to cross the border. He maintained that he had no acquaintances among border guards and had never traveled abroad.

Judge Yevhen Daniliv found Myroslav Bonchak guilty of illegally smuggling people across the border (part 3 of Article 332 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine) and sentenced him to seven years in prison, prohibiting him from holding administrative positions in state or municipal enterprises for three years. Additionally, all of Bonchak's property will be confiscated. He is required to pay 6,600 UAH for court expert examinations. The verdict can be appealed.