Abuse of a child in the Poltava region: Police officers have been suspended from duty

A pre-trial investigation is underway in the Poltava region regarding the abuse of a teenager. Several police officers who failed to register the crime after the victim’s parents reported it have been suspended from duty.

This information was reported by the Office of the Prosecutor General of Ukraine.

Law enforcement agencies are currently reviewing photos and video materials that have been made public on social media. Additionally, the prosecutor’s office has initiated an internal investigation into the actions of police officers who did not enter the crime report into the Unified Register of Pre-Trial Investigations after the victim’s parents filed a complaint.

As of now, four officers have been suspended from their duties.

To recap, in mid-June, on one of the beaches of the Kotelva territorial community, three individuals, including minors, committed sexual acts against a 12-year-old boy. Yesterday, Ukraine’s Commissioner for Human Rights, Dmytro Lubinets, reported that two of the perpetrators were only fined, and the third was not even sought out by authorities.

“Parents got away with a fine of 850 hryvnias (€18.60)! The identity of the third accomplice was not even attempted to be established at that time,” Lubinets wrote.

It was only after this case gained attention on Ukrainian social media that the police added the incident to the Unified Register of Pre-Trial Investigations under Part 4 of Article 153 of the Criminal Code (sexual violence against a minor).