Incident in Kyiv
A 31-year-old man told a shopping center employee that he had an explosive device in his backpack. The store worker, located in a mall in the Dnipro district, called the emergency number 102. The suspect then fled the scene.
Within just a few hours, criminal investigators and analysts identified the offender. The suspect was a local resident, and when police searched his backpack, they found no explosives. Officers from the Dnipro police department detained him under Article 208 of Ukraine's Criminal Procedure Code.
He has been charged under Part 1 of Article 259 of the Ukrainian Criminal Code, which covers knowingly false reports of an explosion. If convicted, he faces up to six years in prison.
Other Hoax Incidents
Separately, in Kyiv, the parents of two sixth-graders faced administrative penalties for a fake video claiming an attack on a lyceum. Additionally, on March 30, authorities received 1,216 anonymous bomb threats via email targeting government offices, schools, and banks.
The Dnipro District Prosecutor's Office is overseeing the case. The school that received the hoax threat also alerted law enforcement.
The rise in fake bomb and explosion reports in Ukraine is worrying both law enforcement and the public. These hoaxes cause panic and drain police and emergency resources needed for real threats. Ukrainian law imposes severe penalties for such crimes to deter future incidents.
The recent incident in Kyiv highlights a troubling trend of false alarms that not only instill fear but also divert critical resources from genuine emergencies. This situation mirrors the ongoing issues with scams in the city, such as the recent crackdown on a crypto fraud ring that exploited individuals with fictitious debts. To learn more about the implications of these deceptive practices and how they affect public safety, read about the rise in crypto scams in Kyiv.