The SBU detained the assistant of the former Gauleiter from the Kharkiv region, who was preparing a fake referendum of the Russian Federation

The Security Service detained another organizer of the illegal referendum of the Russian Federation during the occupation of part of the Kharkiv region.

The perpetrator turned out to be the headman of one of the villages of the Vovchan district, who supported the invaders after the capture of the community.

For this, in the summer of 2022, the occupiers appointed him assistant to the head of the local occupation administration of the aggressor country.

While in the "post", the collaborator was engaged in preparations for a pseudo-referendum on the "accession" of Kharkiv Oblast to Russia.

The figurehead led the campaigning squads of the Russian Federation, which went around the yards of private households, where they called on people to learn how to "vote".

He also looked for "like-minded people", from whom he planned to form occupation "electoral committees".

However, the invaders failed to hold a fake plebiscite, as the Defense Forces liberated the region during a counteroffensive in the fall of 2022.

After the de-occupation of the community, the elder-collaborator hoped to avoid justice, but after a thorough collection of the evidence base and relevant examinations, the investigators of the Security Service informed him of suspicion under two articles of the Criminal Code of Ukraine:

▪ Part 1 of Art. 14, part 5 of Art. 111-1 (collaborative activity);
▪ Part 2 of Art. 110 (encroachment on the territorial integrity and inviolability of Ukraine).

The detainee is currently in custody. He faces up to 10 years in prison with confiscation of property.

Complex measures were carried out by SBU employees in the Kharkiv region under the procedural guidance of the regional prosecutor's office.