Two businessmen will go on trial in Kyiv. They are suspected of defrauding a military man by promising him to produce a “laser weapon” to destroy UAVs and ballistic missiles.
This was reported today, May 5, by the press service of the Main Directorate of the National Police of Kyiv.
It is noted that in November last year, law enforcement officers exposed a Kyiv resident and a resident of Ivano-Frankivsk. According to the investigation, in July 2023, the suspects began communicating with a serviceman. They introduced themselves as managers of a weapons and ammunition production enterprise and stated that they had the latest technologies.
“In particular, the dealers claimed to have three experimental laser devices capable of blinding enemy equipment at a distance of up to five kilometers. In order to finally convince the victim, the offenders organized a personal meeting where they demonstrated specially prepared mock-ups of the “weapon of the future,” the report says.
Investigators found out that the suspects promised to manufacture a “laser device” worth $85,000 for the military. It was supposedly capable of destroying UAVs and ballistic missiles. The man transferred a down payment of 3.2 million hryvnias.
“After waiting for more than two years for the promised equipment, the military never received it, and the defendants misappropriated the funds and spent them for their own needs,” law enforcement officials informed.
Then the investigators informed both defendants of suspicion under Part 5 of Article 190 Fraud committed by a group of persons in a prior conspiracy, on a particularly large scale, under martial law, according to the Criminal Code of Ukraine. The police have now filed charges with the court. The sanction of the article provides for up to 12 years of imprisonment with confiscation of property.
Earlier it was reported that a man suspected of fraud of over 1.4 million hryvnias was detained in Kyiv. He sold non-existent FPV drones and ammunition to the military, volunteers and charitable foundations. Investigators have identified at least nine victims. The total amount of losses exceeds 1.4 million hryvnias.