On June 4, three officials of the Uzhhorod district TCC and SES were informed of suspicions. However, the chronology of this case begins much earlier — and it is more complex than another "military enlistment office scandal."
What happened at the TCC premises
According to Ombudsman Dmytro Lubinets, during a monitoring visit, his representatives documented people shackled with metal chains — various sources mention a radiator, bed, and ladder. One of the victims publicly stated that he was held in shackles for 37 hours straight. In addition to shackles — unsanitary conditions, neglect of illnesses, detention of people without legal grounds for up to 50 days.
"The TCC and SES premises have effectively become places of confinement without any legal basis"
Dmytro Lubinets, Commissioner of the Verkhovna Rada for Human Rights
Three suspicions — three different roles
As Lubinets reported, the distribution of suspicions reflects the hierarchy of violations:
- Acting Head of Uzhhorod RTCC — abuse of authority and unlawful deprivation of liberty (Articles 365 and 146 of the Criminal Code).
- Head of military registration group — the same articles.
- RTCC instructor — torture of a military conscript (Article 127 of the Criminal Code).
All three have been detained; the question of preventive measures is being resolved.
Before reaching suspicions — they had to go to court
A surprising detail of the case: even before criminal suspicions, the Uzhhorod City District Court managed to convict the head of that same TCC for obstructing the ombudsman's work — he prevented representatives from accessing the premises and refused to provide information during inspections. According to Lubinets, this is the first verdict in Ukraine for this type of obstruction of the ombudsman.
So the scheme looks like this: first — conceal, then — block the inspection, then — lose in court for blocking it, and only then — criminal suspicions for concealing.
Investigation moves up the chain of command
On the initiative of the ombudsman's representative Andrii Kryukov, an inspection has been launched into officials of the Zakarpattia regional TCC — those who could have known about violations but failed to stop them. The actions of the operational command commission "West," which conducted an internal investigation but failed to reflect "obvious violations" in it — a quote from Lubinets — are being checked separately.
If the regional level and "West" were indeed informed — the case transforms from a local incident into systemic concealment. Whether the Specialized Prosecutor's Office for Defense Matters, which has already secured the initial suspicions, will dare to move further up the chain of command — will become clear after the court decides on preventive measures for the three detainees: if the court keeps them in custody without the possibility of bail, pressure on witnesses will decrease and testimony regarding higher-ranking officials will become more realistic.
