In Ivano-Frankivsk, officers of the Security Service of Ukraine together with the prosecutor’s office and the police liquidated an underground printing house for the production of forged documents.
Residents of Ivano-Frankivsk and Zakarpattia regions organized the printing of fake temporary residence permits and fake Ukrainian domestic and international passports. They provided “services” to Ukrainians who wanted to travel to EU countries and to foreigners who wanted to stay in Ukraine illegally.
For clients who lost their right to enter the Schengen area due to visa violations, criminals created duplicate Ukrainian passports of real people. They simply pasted a photo of the customer into the document. Such a service cost from two to three thousand euros.
For foreigners who wanted to obtain a temporary residence permit in Ukraine, the criminals searched for Ukrainian women who were ready to enter into a fictitious marriage with foreigners for a fee, and made fake residence permits.
During searches in the apartments and cars of the organizers of the crime, law enforcement officers confiscated dozens of domestic and foreign Ukrainian passports, photos of clients, hundreds of fake documents, including Ukrainian law individual taxpayer identification number, temporary residence permits and birth certificates. The special services also found printing equipment, printing inks, counterfeit seals, clichés and stamps of state authorities and law enforcement agencies.
Criminal proceedings under Part 3 of Art. 332 of the Criminal code of Ukraine have been instituted.
