So, the verdict of the Volodymyr-Volyn City Court of Volyn Oblast in the case of smuggling excisable goods – cars in the form of humanitarian aid:
“…in early January 2024, a more precise time has not been established by the pre-trial investigation, with the aim of illicit enrichment and under unspecified circumstances, he decided to smuggle vehicles.”
“…Implementing this plan, believing that the import of cars into the customs territory of Ukraine as humanitarian aid… is an easy and quick way to improve his financial situation significantly, he developed a plan of criminal activity for smuggling excisable goods – cars in the form of humanitarian aid.”
The convict purchased seven cars abroad and moved them across the customs border as humanitarian aid:
Mercedes Benz ML 270 2002, Mercedes Benz ML 270, BMW X5 2004, BMW X5 2005, OPEL ZAFIRA 2001, Nissan Qashqai 2007, KIA Sorento 2007.
The total value of the smuggled items amounted to UAH 1,780,096, a significant amount (starting at UAH 1,135,500).
In other words, according to the public prosecution and the judge, the defendant intended to commit smuggling on a large scale.
The verdict does not contain the circumstances of the crime’s detection and the convict’s detention, but from the court decision, we learn that the convict entered into a plea agreement with the prosecution.
The judge approved the agreement and imposed the penalty the parties agreed upon: a fine of 20,000 tax-free minimum income, which is 340,000 UAH.
Based on Part 4 of Art. 53 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine, the fine was paid in installments: UAH 170,000 within one month from the date the verdict enters into force, and then the remaining amount in equal installments for a period of five months, i.e. UAH 34,000 per month.
According to a study by the Economic Expert Platform and the Institute for Socio-Economic Transformation (which includes CASE Ukraine experts) on tax evasion schemes, annual losses from smuggling/gray imports amount to UAH 80-150 billion.
The monitoring of court decisions on smuggling penalties is being implemented within the framework of the project “Assessment of the Criminalization of Smuggling in Ukraine from the Perspective of EU Legislation”, implemented by the Center for Social and Economic Research CASE Ukraine as part of the USAID/ENGAGE activity, which is funded by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) and implemented by Pact in Ukraine. The contents of this project are the sole responsibility of Pact and its partners and do not necessarily reflect the views of USAID or the United States Government.