Authorities conducted searches at the commander of the 211th brigade, and new suspicions are being prepared against him, according to sources.

The State Bureau of Investigation conducted searches at the commander of the 211th pontoon-bridge brigade of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, Oleg Poberezhnyuk. He is facing new charges due to the mistreatment of soldiers within the brigade.

This information was reported by RBK-Ukraine citing its own sources.

According to the sources, the investigation believes that Poberezhnyuk was aware of the torture and other inhumane treatment by officer Vladislav Pastukhov, but failed to respond or initiate any actions for holding him accountable.

For this reason, the brigade commander is reportedly being prepared for charges under Part 4 of Article 426 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine - inaction of military authority committed under martial law.

Poberezhnyuk already has one charge against him for abuse of office. He was arrested for involving soldiers in the construction of a house in the Khmelnytskyi region. However, he was released from custody on bail of over 900,000 hryvnias.

Scandal in the 211th Brigade

In December, journalists published an investigation into the mistreatment of soldiers, corruption, and abuses in the 211th pontoon-bridge brigade of the Armed Forces of Ukraine. The main figures in the investigation were brigade commander Poberezhnyuk and senior lieutenant Pastukh, who is the son of the brigade's chief of staff.

Subsequently, Poberezhnyuk faced charges of abuse of office, while Pastukh was charged with mistreating subordinates. The latter is currently hiding from law enforcement authorities.

For more details about the scandal surrounding the 211th brigade, read the article by RBK-Ukraine.