Prosecutors charge five recruitment officials in western Ukraine with 857 fake mobilisations
Ukraine's Prosecutor General's Office announced suspicions on Friday, 25 September against current and former heads of district military recruitment centres (RTsKK) in Zakarpattia and Chernivtsi regions. Between December 2025 and February 2026 the officials entered at least 857 fictitious mobilisations into the "Oberih" register, including non-existent persons and serving soldiers.
Key points
- On 25 September prosecutors announced suspicions against a sitting and a former Zakarpattia RTsKK head and a former Chernivtsi RTsKK head; indictments against two other former Chernivtsi heads have already been sent to court.
- The officials entered data on at least 857 fictitious mobilisations into the "Oberih" register between December 2025 and February 2026.
- Fake entries covered citizens who never appeared at recruitment centres and were never called up, active servicemen, and non-existent persons.
- Investigators documented 54 cases of fake mobilisation in Zakarpattia, including 8 by one RTsKK head and 46 by a former acting head.
- In Chernivtsi region investigators found 803 cases of fake conscription, including 631 non-existent persons entered by one colonel and 99 and 73 by two other former RTsKK heads.
- A court has ordered preventive measures for three Chernivtsi officials; prosecutors have filed a petition for a preventive measure against the Zakarpattia suspect.
- Actions are qualified under Articles 362 and 366 of the Ukrainian Criminal Code; pre-trial investigation continues by police and SBU investigators.
Why it matters
The case exposes senior recruitment officials in two western Ukrainian regions allegedly manipulating mobilisation records on a large scale at a time when Kyiv is struggling to meet monthly intake targets. With Office of the President head Kyrylo Budanov putting the required figure at at least 30,000 per month, 857 fictitious entries — including non-existent persons and soldiers already serving — could have inflated reported mobilisation numbers and diverted real recruits away from frontline units. The fact that indictments are already going to court shows that law enforcement is pursuing the allegations, but the underlying scheme raises broader questions about the integrity of recruitment data.
What happened
Ukraine's Office of the Prosecutor General announced on Friday, 25 September that prosecutors had notified a serving and a former head of Zakarpattia district recruitment centres (RTsKK) and a former head of a Chernivtsi RTsKK of suspicion. Indictments had already been sent to court against two other former Chernivtsi heads. Between December 2025 and February 2026 these officials entered data on at least 857 people into the "Oberih" military register as mobilised, though those listed included citizens who never appeared at recruitment centres, servicemen already serving, and people who did not exist. Investigators documented 54 such cases in Zakarpattia, where one RTsKK head entered 8 fictitious mobilisations and a former acting head entered 46. In Chernivtsi region the total reached 803 cases, including 631 non-existent persons entered by one colonel and 99 and 73 by two other former heads, whose documents were forwarded to military units. A court has ordered preventive measures for three Chernivtsi officials, and prosecutors have petitioned the court for a preventive measure against the Zakarpattia suspect. Their actions are qualified under Articles 362 and 366 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine; pre-trial investigation is being continued by police and the SBU.
Background
On 28 August the head of the Office of the President, Kyrylo Budanov, said sustaining the current strength of Ukraine's Defence Forces requires mobilising at least 30,000 citizens per month. The following day, the deputy head of the Office of the President, Pavlo Palisa, said there are currently no plans to lower the upper mobilisation age limit to 55. One of the Zakarpattia officials had previously been notified of suspicion for unlawfully depriving military-age men of liberty; he was released on bail and was serving in a combat unit in the east at the time of the events in question.