A student who created a Viber group for tax evaders was tried in Ivano-Frankivsk region

The Ivano-Frankivsk City Court found a local resident guilty of obstructing the lawful activities of the Armed Forces of Ukraine.

The accused admitted his guilt and signed a plea agreement with the prosecutor, so he received a lenient sentence – two years of probation. This is stated in the Unified State Register of Court Decisions.

A full-time student of the Ivano-Frankivsk Vocational Construction Lyceum on February 8, 2023 created an information group in the Viber messenger called «Subpoenas Snyatyn Kosiv district».

The community members wanted to avoid military service. Therefore, they exchanged information about the places and times of serving subpoenas by employees of recruitment and social support centers in the Kolomyia and Kosiv districts.

«To hide his illegal activities, he closed the contact details (numbers) of all group members, including his own, in the group settings. This also indicates that the accused was aware that he was engaging in illegal activities and did not want to be caught committing them. At the same time, he personally designated himself as the superadmin of the group (a user with the nickname Admin)», – the court verdict states.

The court approved the plea agreement. It found the student guilty of committing a criminal offense under Part 1 Article 114-1 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine and released him from serving the prescribed sentence of imprisonment with probation, setting a probationary period of 2 years.

Now he must periodically appear for registration with the authorized body for probation; notify the authorized body for probation about a change in place of residence, work or study; not to travel outside Ukraine without the consent of the authorized probation agency, to carry out the measures provided for by the probation program.