Tickets bypassing ticket offices: multi-million international transport scheme uncovered in Zakarpattia. VIDEO+PHOTOS
Under the procedural supervision of the Transcarpathian Regional Prosecutor’s Office, a tax evasion scheme involving the organisation of bus trips to EU countries has been uncovered.
According to the investigation, the transport operator carried out journeys to the Czech Republic, Poland and Slovakia, but sold a significant proportion of tickets outside official ticket offices, reports Censor.NET.
Details
Passengers booked seats online through affiliated agents and paid cash to drivers upon boarding, which was often arranged outside bus stations. Some payments were accepted in foreign currency.
The funds received were not reflected in the accounts. According to operational data, up to a hundred tickets could be sold in a single day, and in total, around 200,000 passengers were transported between 2024 and 2026.
Authorised searches were carried out, including on the bus station premises. Over 10,000 US dollars, around 30,000 euros, nearly 20,000 Czech korunas and 15,000 hryvnias were seized, along with equipment, documents and records of ‘shadow’ accounting.
The preliminary legal classification is tax evasion and the legalisation of proceeds obtained by criminal means.
