Former Minister of Infrastructure of Ukraine Volodymyr Omelyan was suspected of evading military service. This was reported by the State Bureau of Investigation.
The name of the suspect was not mentioned in the department, but the website of the Prosecutor General’s Office published a suspicion under the relevant article against Volodymyr Omelyan, who headed the Ministry of Infrastructure in 2016–2019.
According to the State Bureau of Investigation, after mobilization, Omelyan served as an officer in the planning group of the headquarters of one of the military units. At the same time, the investigation believes that he did not perform his official duties for a long time.
“The official was supposed to ensure the collection and analysis of information on the combat situation, control the execution of command orders, and prepare proposals for planning combat operations. However, instead, he systematically misled the leadership, claiming that he was performing other tasks related to logistics and ensuring the activities of the military unit,” the SBI said.
Law enforcement officers claim that in 2022–2023, Omelyan in some cases managed his own time at his own discretion, although he was supposed to be on duty. During this period, according to the investigation, he did not perform any duties related to service in a military unit in Cherkasy region.
He was informed of suspicion under Part 4 of Article 409 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine – evasion of a serviceman from performing military service duties by deception under martial law. The sanction of the article provides for up to 10 years of imprisonment.
In 2019, NABU and SAPO already informed Omelyan of suspicion in the port dues case. According to the investigation, the state budget received UAH 30.5 million less due to the decision to reduce port fees.
In August 2020, NABU completed the investigation of this case, and in October 2021, the Supreme Anti-Corruption Court issued a verdict, which found the arguments of the prosecution unproven and acquitted Omelyan.
