In the Lviv region, a court punished a Viber group administrator who published locations where summonses were distributed.

In Lviv region, court punished a man who created and administered a channel about locations of summons distribution in Viber messenger. The verdict in case No. 454/3967/24 was delivered by Sokalskyi District Court of Lviv region.

As indicated in the case materials, in March 2023, the accused created a group in Viber messenger, in which its members distributed information about holding mobilization events.

It is indicated that the man monitored users' messages in the chat, and also personally distributed information about the dates and places of warning events held by military personnel of the district units of the CCC among a significant number of people.

Namely, in the aforementioned chat, he distributed messages obtained as a result of personal observation, as well as from other Internet sources, of the following content: «New bus station is clean», «The military were on a bus on Chaykovsky», «Three patrol cars are now on Sokal. They stop selectively», «Chg near the market, three with folders, handing out», «Police in Knyazhy towards Bodiachev», «Black Opel Perespa, military» etc.

According to the investigation, from the beginning of March 2023 to August 2024, from three to 10 messages were posted daily in the Viber group with information about the time and place of service of summonses by military personnel of district units of the CCC, which allowed persons of draft age to avoid receiving summonses in these places, and as a result, created the prerequisites for evasion of their military duty.

The defendant pleaded guilty in court and repented.

The court found the man guilty of obstructing the lawful activities of the Armed Forces of Ukraine and sentenced him to five years in prison. At the same time, the court sentenced him to one year of probation, which can still be appealed.

Natasha Kumar

By Natasha Kumar

Natasha Kumar has been a reporter on the news desk since 2018. Before that she wrote about young adolescence and family dynamics for Styles and was the legal affairs correspondent for the Metro desk. Before joining The Times Hub, Natasha Kumar worked as a staff writer at the Village Voice and a freelancer for Newsday, The Wall Street Journal, GQ and Mirabella. To get in touch, contact me through my natasha@thetimeshub.in 1-800-268-7116