At a time when millions of Ukrainians are fleeing the war, seeking refuge abroad, not all compatriots show solidarity and willingness to help. Unfortunately, there are those who use the crisis for their own enrichment. One such example is the case currently being considered by a court in the Czech city of Ostrava, where a mother and son from Ukraine are accused of fraud.
How the scheme of fraudsters worked
In the city of Ostrava, the court is considering the case of Ukrainian citizens Nataliya Skarkova and her son Serhiy Tkach, who, according to the investigation, took advantage of the Czech government’s program, which provides for compensation to homeowners for sheltering Ukrainian refugees. After the start of the full-scale Russian invasion of Ukraine, such an initiative aimed to help hundreds of thousands of people who left their homes.
However, instead of providing real assistance, the defendants submitted 170 applications for financial compensation to the local labor office. The total amount they managed to embezzle was more than one million Czech crowns (approximately 1.7 million hryvnias), and they were trying to get half a million more before the fraud was discovered. About this writes News.
The investigation established that the mother and son did not own any housing and did not enter into any lease agreements with the refugees. Thanks to the control mechanisms of the labor bureau, it was possible to detect fraud, and the case was transferred to law enforcement agencies.
The reaction of society and the legal process
The trial of the case caused a stir both among the Ukrainian diaspora and among the Czechs. Prosecutor Veronika Kochova reported that the defendants admitted their guilt and expressed their readiness to compensate for all the damages caused. Because of this, the prosecution is demanding a suspended sentence for them under a plea agreement.
The final decision of the court is expected at the end of February. However, this case has already become the subject of heated discussions, because such cases undermine trust in Ukrainian refugees, who, in the main, strive to honestly adapt and integrate into the new society.
Such incidents harm not only the injured party, but also the image of the entire Ukrainian diaspora. While the majority of refugees are genuinely grateful for the support, isolated cases of fraud give rise to negative stereotypes and prejudices.
“Such cases are a blow to all of us. We are here fighting for the right of Ukrainians to be accepted, we help families who lost everything because of the war, and such actions discredit all our work,” says Olga Melnyk, a volunteer in Prague.
What this means for aid programs
Despite the fact that the case of Nataliya Skarkova and Serhiy Tkach is an exception, it calls into question the effectiveness of mechanisms for monitoring refugee support programs. The Czech Republic, like many other countries, provides significant resources to help migrants, but incidents like this could lead to increased checks and restrictions on access to these programs.
“We have to strengthen control, but without unnecessarily complicating procedures for those who really need help,” – comments the representative of the labor office in Ostrava.
This case is a reminder of how important it is to maintain ethics and solidarity even in the most difficult times. For Ukrainians living abroad, such behavior of compatriots becomes not only a moral challenge, but also a risk of losing the trust of the society that accepted them.
In today’s conditions, when millions of people are forced to leave their homes because of war, it is important that help goes to those who really need it. At the same time, cases of abuse must be detected in a timely manner and fairly punished, so that such situations do not become the norm.
