The ferry captain was suspected of transporting passengers from Crimea to Russia

The captain of a Russian vessel is suspected of illegal sea transportation from Crimea to the Russian Federation.

The captain of the cargo-passenger ferry “Poseidon Express” was informed of the suspicion under the procedural guidance of the autonomous prosecutor’s office.

The actions of the captain were classified as illegal transportation of persons across the state border of Ukraine (Part 2 of Article 332 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine). The sanction of the article provides from 5 to 7 years of imprisonment.

According to the investigation, in June 2014, the suspect, in violation of Ukrainian legislation, repeatedly transported passengers and automobile equipment, which they and the ship’s crew were accompanying, across the state border of Ukraine – from the temporarily closed Feodosia port to the port of Novorossiysk and back.

We would like to remind that in connection with the temporary occupation of the Crimean peninsula by the Russian Federation, since April 2014, the international 24-hour checkpoint – Feodosia Sea Trade Port – has been closed, and the units of the State Border Service of Ukraine in Crimea have been relocated to the mainland of Ukraine.

Previously, USM reported that the captain of the Russian vessel was informed of suspicion due to the illegal transportation of looted grain from the temporarily occupied territories of Ukraine.

In total, during the past year, the Russians took out at least 4.8 million tons of stolen grain from the temporarily occupied territories of Ukraine.