Milk Truck Used to Hide Nine Men Leaving Ukraine. A Moldovan Citizen Was Behind the Wheel.
Ukrainian border guards discovered nine men who were allegedly trying to cross the border illegally. They were hiding inside a truck carrying dairy products. The incident took place near the village of Maiaky in Odesa region, according to Ukrainian media.
The DAF truck was driven by a citizen of the Republic of Moldova and was stopped for inspection. Inside the trailer, border guards found nine men hiding among boxes of dairy products.
According to Strana.ua, the driver was transporting the men to the Starokozache border crossing. Each man had allegedly paid between $12,000 and $16,000 for illegal passage across the border.
Footage published by local media shows law enforcement officers opening the truck and ordering the men to get out with their hands raised. The men emerge one by one from behind the boxes of dairy products.
Administrative offence reports were drawn up against the nine men. The competent authorities will establish the full circumstances of the case.
Ukraine’s Border Guard Service Reports 10 Men in the Truck
The Ukrainian Border Guard Service published a statement on its Telegram channel. Its account differs from the initial media reports, stating that 10 men, rather than nine, were found inside the truck.
“10 border violators tried to reach Moldova in a milk truck
Officers from the Mohyliv-Podilskyi Border Guard Detachment stopped a truck near the Moldovan border. The carrier, a 40-year-old Moldovan citizen, claimed he was transporting a load of milk pallets.
However, the trick failed. An inspection of the ‘cargo’ revealed that, instead of milk, 10 border violators from different regions of Ukraine were hiding among the pallets. Each had paid between $3,000 and $15,000, hoping to enter Moldova illegally. The passengers kept in touch with the driver inside the sealed trailer using a radio.
All were held administratively liable, and the carrier was notified that he was suspected of illegally transporting people across the border.”
Read the official statement from Ukraine’s Border Guard Service.
Official Details of the Alleged Smuggling Operation
In a separate statement on its official website, the Ukrainian Border Guard Service provided further details. It also reported that 10 men had been found in the truck.
“10 men tried to reach Moldova in a milk truck in Odesa region
Officers from the Mohyliv-Podilskyi Border Guard Detachment dismantled a channel for the illegal transportation of people across the state border.
A 40-year-old Moldovan citizen organised the logistics. Driving a DAF truck, he was heading towards the Starokozache border crossing with 10 passengers hidden among pallets of milk. For residents of the Dnipropetrovsk, Vinnytsia, Kharkiv, Kyiv and Lviv regions, this journey was supposed to cost the equivalent of a luxury cruise: between $3,000 and $15,000 per person.
However, the scheme failed. Law enforcement officers stopped the truck on its way to the border near the village of Maiaky. The group of travellers was held administratively liable.
During authorised searches, officers seized the driver’s phone, radios used to communicate with the passengers, a notebook containing draft notes, and cash in various currencies.
The foreign national was notified that he was suspected of an offence under Article 332, ‘Illegal transportation of persons across the state border’.
The operation was conducted jointly with officers from the Bilhorod-Dnistrovskyi Border Guard Detachment, in cooperation with the National Police and the Security Service of Ukraine’s Vinnytsia regional office, under the procedural supervision of the Vinnytsia Regional Prosecutor’s Office.”
Read the full report on the official website of Ukraine’s Border Guard Service.
