6 residents of the Nizhyn district, who acted together, were suspected of illegal felling of trees on the territory of the Baturyn territorial community, which caused environmental damage totaling more than UAH 11 million.
This was reported by the press service of the Chernihiv Regional Prosecutor's Office.
Police investigators found that the organizer of the criminal scheme was the director of a local enterprise. He involved 5 of his acquaintances in the scheme.
First, the director looked for forest plots with the necessary tree species in protective forest plantations. Then he instructed his accomplices to carry out felling and transport the illegally cut timber to the territory of his enterprise.
Photo: chrg.gp.gov.ua.
Without a special permit (logging ticket), they cut down and transported trees stripped of branches in order to sell them later. The perpetrators did manage to sell some of the illegally obtained wood.
By the time this illegal scheme was exposed, the attackers managed to carry out 7 illegal cuttings. They cut down more than 400 oak, pine and poplar trees. Experts estimated the environmental damage caused in the total amount of more than 11 million hryvnias.
Photo: chrg.gp.gov.ua.
During the investigation, investigators seized chainsaws and a vehicle with which the suspects transported illegally harvested wood.
Members of an organized criminal group were charged with illegal felling of trees in protective forest plantations, transportation, storage and sale of illegally cut trees committed by an organized group, which caused serious consequences (Part 4 of Article 246 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine). The sanction of the article provides for deprivation of liberty for a period of 5 to 7 years.
Photo: chrg.gp.gov.ua.
The other day, EcoPolitic reported on an organized criminal group from the state-owned enterprise "Kutske Lisov'e Hospodarstvo", which since 2018 has been engaged in illegal logging on the territory of the National Nature Park "Hutsulshchyna". Now the accused will appear before the court
