Prosecutors of the Poltava Regional Prosecutor's Office have sent an indictment to the court regarding a group of six individuals. 

According to the investigation, the group was organized by a 22-year-old resident of Poltava, who is serving time in a correctional facility for a number of crimes and has the status of a "criminal authority." He involved five local residents in illegal activities, which he directed from behind bars.

To ensure financial support and coordinate criminal activities, the "criminal authority" organized a meeting. At his request, the group members supplied "cannabis" to the correctional facility, hiding the drug in household chemicals (household soap, shower gels). The leader of the group was directly involved in the sale of the "goods" among the inmates. 

It was also established that the group extorted a fictitious debt of 2,700 US dollars from a Poltava entrepreneur. To force him to pay, the individuals threatened the entrepreneur with physical harm and destruction of property. Fearing for his life and under constant psychological pressure, the victim transferred part of the money – 62,000 hryvnias – to the bank card of one of the group members.

The group's activities were halted in May of this year. During searches at the men's residences and in their vehicles, law enforcement seized bank cards, mobile phones, and money in both national and foreign currencies. 

Depending on their roles within the group, the men are charged with intentionally establishing and spreading criminal influence in society, organizing and participating in a criminal gathering (meeting), seeking the application of criminal influence, as well as demanding the transfer of someone else's property with threats of violence against the victim, illegal acquisition, storage, transportation, and sending for the purpose of selling narcotic substances to places of deprivation of liberty, committed under martial law, repeatedly, by prior conspiracy of a group of individuals (Part 2 of Article 255-1, Part 1 of Article 255-2, Part 1 of Article 255-3, Part 4 of Article 189, Part 2 of Article 307 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine).

The pre-trial investigation and operational support in the criminal proceedings are conducted by the Main Directorate of the National Police, the Security Service of Ukraine in the Poltava region, and the Investigative Department of the National Police of Ukraine in the Poltava region.

Note: According to Article 62 of the Constitution of Ukraine, a person is presumed innocent of committing a crime and cannot be subjected to criminal punishment until their guilt is proven in a lawful manner and established by a guilty verdict of the court.