“Oil tycoons”, who were stealing fuel in Lviv and Transcarpathian regions, face 20 years in jail

Illegal business that brought millions in revenue to several enterprising Ukrainians can now bring the same damage: the violators face up to 26 years imprisonment, confiscation of property and huge fines, reports Komsomolskaya Pravda.

 "Oil businessmen" were caught red-handed in early November in the Transcarpathian region by the Security Service of Ukraine jointly with the Tax Service.

 – Five people have been arrested – informed the press center of the Security Service. – Through the tie-in pipeline of total length of two and a half kilometers, they pumped oil into special trucks with hidden tanks. At the crime scene the investigators seized equipment for drilling, devices to search and lay pipes, trucks converted to transport fuel and 155 tons of oil.

 Moreover, as reported by the officers of the Sercurity Service of Ukraine, after the search of a private enterprise in Lviv region they found the equipment that the offenders used to process crude oil. The resulting fuel was supplied to private depots throughout Ukraine.

 – The amount of seized equipment for taking and processing of oil exceeds 20 million hryvnias – noted the officers of the Security Service.

 They immediately opened a criminal case against the enterprising residents of Transcarpathian and Lviv regions under five articles of the Criminal Code of Ukraine (Part 5 of Art. 185, Part 1 of Art. 204, Part 1 of Art. 209, Part 3 of Art.212, and Part 2 of Art. 292). The maximum penalty under them is 20 years imprisonment. Also defendants may be punished by the confiscation of the property and "business equipment" and millions of fines.