Smuggling, coverups, and robberies at blockposts

Also featuring a grenade launcher in a taxi boot

I’ve published earlier on this substack about the power of smuggling networks in the pre-2022 conflict in Ukraine. Recently, events took place which show the extent to which this practice has grown in the post-2022 period.

The strange case of the dead policeman

The main event of today’s post took place on April 20 at around 2AM, when two men in military uniform shot and killed a policeman in a rural area of the west Ukrainian region of Vinnytsia. When their Suzuki was stopped at a blockpost to check documents, they opened fire, killing a 20 year old policeman and wounding another. Police released the following photos of the perpetrators, who at that moment were not yet arrested. The original police statement did not describe them as soldiers:

A photo was also released of the police car:

Around 11:30AM, telegram channels began sharing the video shot from the perspective of one of the unfortunate policemen. In it, they state that they serve in the 58th radio-technical brigade of the air defense forces. In this video it became clear that the soldiers opened fire because of what they were carrying. The policemen asked them to open the boxes located in the boot of their car. The soldiers claimed to be looking for a knife with which to open them, but instead opened fire on the policemen.

At 11:56 AM, the Ukrainian oppositional media source Strana published the names of the soldiers - Valeriy and Vitaliy Vasylake, father and son, aged 52 and 26 years old. Though it was clear that they were soldiers, at this point there was still no confirmation of this fact.

Close to 4PM that day the Armed Forces of Ukraine confirmed that the men involved were servicemen.

Around 3PM on April 21, news emerged that the Vasylakes had been arrested that day. They were found in the Odesa region, though they themselves were from Vinnytsia region and had committed the crime there.

Later that day, Strana published details of the events given to them by their sources in law enforcement:

In the police car [that had been shot by the Vasylakes], there were two employees of the Ministry of Internal Affairs and one civilian, who was being taken to the police station to draft a report on domestic violence.

"After Vitaliy Vasylake punched police officer Maksym Sharapansky, his partner - the deceased police officer Maksym Zaretsky - exited the patrol car and opened fire with his service weapon. At that moment, Valeriy Vasylake opened fire on the police officer with a TT pistol, killing police officer Zaretsky and wounding Sharapansky in the left buttock," a source from the law enforcement agencies told "Strana."

He also added that the military servicemen Valeriy Vasylake and his son Vitaliy Vasylake were serving in unit A0416, located in Chornomorsk, Odesa region, but had deserted the day before the crime.

"On April 19 at 18:00, they voluntarily left the territory of the military unit. Valeriy Vasylake took with him a TT service pistol, from which he shot at the police," the source reported.

Meanwhile, the National Police reports that the suspects in the police shooting were planning to flee abroad and were hiding in an abandoned building in the Odesa region

On April 22, the Ukrainian ministry of internal affairs confirmed that the Vasilake brothers had been transporting ammunition and grenades.

Vasiliy, the father, was ordered to be held in custody without the possibility of bail by the Vinnytsia city court on April 22. The prosecutor claimed that the Vasilakes had planned to escape Ukraine:

After committing the crime, the suspects went to their home, where they took their foreign passports. After that, they hid in a forest plantation near their residence. During the arrest, the foreign passports were confiscated from the suspects.

Vasiliy also gave his version of the events:

"My son fired the shot, he told me he thought the police officer had shot me”

He also claimed his son had stolen the weapons.

"We just wanted to hide them, to have them"

"We wanted to go to Moldova, but I understood that it wasn't realistic"

The same day, Vitaliy, the son, who fired at least 4 shots, was given the same provisional sentence. The prosecutor stated the following:

He fired at least four shots at the police officer. After committing the crime, he was the one who threw the ammunition they were transporting, specifically grenades, into a lake located near their home.

Vitaly had the following to say:

When the police officer stopped us, I thought he was alone, and when I hit him, I didn't know he had a partner. I thought the police officer I was talking to was alone, and I hoped he would lose consciousness and we could drive away. I didn't expect a second officer to appear and open fire on the car where my father was. I was in shock, ran behind the car, automatically pulled out the pistol, and opened fire on the officer, but I didn't intend to kill him.

He supported his father’s earlier statement that the grenades belonged to him:

There were two boxes of F1 grenades, with ten in each box. I wanted to bury them at home for uncertain times.

A cover-up?

Apparently it goes without saying that people in Ukraine may need weapons to defend themselves at home. Vitaly also expressed his deep regret about what had happened. Nevertheless, his innocent version regarding his intentions seems unlikely, nor does the narrative given by the court. Strana had the following to say:

Valeriy Vasylake says he wanted to go to Moldova, while Vitaliy claims he was carrying grenades to bury them at home. However, it is unclear why they would bury ammunition if they intended to leave Ukraine illegally, especially since it would mean they wouldn't return home anytime soon. Moreover, it is puzzling why they would take grenades, particularly two boxes, if they planned to leave the country.