A major corruption scandal is unfolding in the Volyn region involving the Territorial Service Centers (TSC) of the Ministry of Internal Affairs. Vasyl Smirnov, the current Deputy Head of the regional Migration Police and former Head of Internal Security for the Volyn regional police, has allegedly organized a massive extortion scheme for administrative services. The illicit network involves both current and former TSC directors and examiners, with bribes for passing driving exams reaching up to $2,000.
According to reports, a sprawling network of officials operates under the protection of Lieutenant Colonel Vasyl Smirnov. Pavlo Kovalchuk, the Deputy Head of the Regional Service Center (RSC) of the Ministry of Internal Affairs in the Volyn region, is also suspected of coordinating the scheme and distributing the illicit financial flows.
On-the-ground execution and collection of funds were managed by key TSC personnel. Among those implicated are Yuriy Zhdan, Acting Director of TSC No. 0744; Lyudmyla Ilyushyk, an employee at TSC No. 0742; and Viktor Khodyrev and Yevhen Semenyuk, both former examiners at the same facility.
«A local businessman named Viktor Zinych, nicknamed ‘Mebelnyk’ (The Furniture Maker), serves as the primary financial intermediary and ‘cashier’ for Smirnov and Kovalchuk at TSC No. 0742. He went as far as setting up a private office directly on the premises of the state institution.»
An associate named Yuliya also worked out of Zinych’s office, handling the direct collection of cash and the illegal resale of electronic queue tickets.
Investigations into the group’s activities have exposed a comprehensive price list for «services» at the Volyn service centers. Passing the theoretical driving exam was the most expensive illicit service, commanded at $2,000, while the practical driving test cost $400.
Illicit vehicle documentation modifications also carried fixed rates. Falsifying a vehicle’s weight (either increasing or decreasing it fictitiously) cost $1,000, while processing the purchase or sale of a vehicle from abroad was priced at $500.
For standard vehicle registration, the group charged between 6,000 and 7,000 UAH. Obtaining an electronic queue ticket to bypass waiting lines cost 3,000 UAH, and a driver’s license exchange was priced at 2,000 UAH. Additionally, issuing a temporary permit for traveling abroad carried a rate of 4,000 UAH.
Law enforcement agencies are currently reviewing the involvement of the named individuals in systematic bribery and abuse of power. No official statements have yet been released by the leadership of the Main Directorate of the National Police in the Volyn region.