Extortion, non-transparent procurement and pressure on servicemen: scandal over possible abuses in 58th Separate Motorised Infantry Brigade
MP Mariana Bezuhla has published a post setting out a series of serious allegations regarding the situation inside the 58th Separate Motorised Infantry Brigade.
This was reported by Censor.NET.
The MP said she had received appeals from servicemen and people inside the unit, along with documents, extracts from the Unified Register of Pre-Trial Investigations, procurement contracts, and testimony about possible abuses.
According to Bezuhla, the allegations concern alleged systemic problems in the brigade, including corruption schemes, extortion from personnel, non-transparent procurement, and cases of violence against servicemen.
She claims that brigade commander Ivan Shnyr, after taking command of the 58th Separate Motorised Infantry Brigade, brought "his own people" into positions as deputy commander and head of logistics, as well as certain individuals responsible for procurement and those in charge of "regular extortion from personnel."
"Procurement is then organised through ‘their own people.’ For example, drones are purchased through the required suppliers. This concerns FPVs, fibre-optic drones, Mavics, electronic warfare systems and other critical supplies. According to the materials provided, one of the key contractors is Armada LLC, for which the documents are prepared. While servicemen in combat units buy used cars in non-working condition with their own money, the leadership moves around in brand-new Toyota Hilux vehicles through the same schemes involving intermediaries. Well, the brigade commander is already on his third Hilux. But this local brigade feudal lord is not satisfied with that. It gets worse: forced collections for toys for the boss. For Shnyr’s birthday, battalions, companies and platoons were required to ‘chip in’ UAH 50,000 each under compulsion for a Suzuki Hayabusa motorcycle. The brigade commander then rides this motorcycle, has fun and injures his arm, while they try to register the injury as a combat one, allegedly sustained while on duty," the MP wrote.
She says servicemen disliked by the brigade leadership are sent on assaults, inconvenient ones are sent to basements, and witnesses are sent to positions from which people usually do not return.
Some soldiers in the brigade confirmed Bezuhla’s words to Censor.NET.
"When we raised the alarm, an inspection team from the General Staff, headed by a general from the Military Law Enforcement Service, came to our brigade. The counterintelligence officers also really wanted some kind of inspection from the General Staff to come, because they are not really allowed to work. So they bring people who give testimony to the Military Law Enforcement Service officers, and they reply: ‘This is all old news.’ The first week passes, then the second, and it becomes clear that the situation is bad. The inspection did come, but with some unclear purpose. We have now been told not to count on them too much. And there is internal resistance in the brigade against what is generally happening here. Before Shnyr took over, there had never been any corruption scandals here, no one was sent to the zero line to finish them off, no beatings and so on. But now, for example, everyone has to contribute money as a percentage. Those who go on combat missions give 10% of their payments. Those who are there less often contribute 30-40%. An entire mechanism is operating. There are lists with names," one serviceman from the brigade said on condition of anonymity.
Censor.NET has sent a journalistic inquiry to the 58th Separate Motorised Infantry Brigade to obtain the brigade’s official position.
