Sailor from Izmail received suspended sentence for drug trafficking

The senior mate of the ship “Belgrade” tried to secretly transport cannabis and devices for smoking it through the port of Izmail.

In the spring of 2024, a native of the village of Broska illegally purchased a package of drugs in the port of Galati with a total weight of 17.5 g, Bessarabia.UA reports.

This happened during a voyage on the route Izmail-Smeredevo-Izmail. According to the sailor, he tried to hide the substance in his backpack and socks, but the smuggling was discovered during a customs inspection in the port of Izmail.

The man claimed that he found cannabis and other tobacco products in one of the barges during loading. According to him, he “tried to smoke this substance and felt slight changes in consciousness.”

The sailor also stated that he had not had any contact with drugs before and sincerely repents of his act.

Law enforcement officers incriminated the man’s actions as criminal offenses under Part 1 of Article 309 of the Criminal Code (illegal acquisition, storage and transportation of a narcotic drug without the purpose of sale) and Part 1 of Article 305 of the Criminal Code (smuggling of narcotic drugs, i.e. their movement across the customs border of Ukraine with concealment from customs control).

The court found the sailor guilty of committing these offenses and imposed a cumulative sentence of five years. However, according to Article 75 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine, the court released the accused from serving the main sentence with probation if he does not commit systematic offenses during the probationary period of three years.

Earlier, USM reported that four sailors are being tried in Singapore for oil spills.