The SSU has exposed new organizers of sham referendums in the temporarily occupied territories of eastern Ukraine.

SSU investigators have identified 5 so-called ‘members of the LNR people’s council of the III convocation’, who facilitated the adoption of a pseudo-law on a fake referendum in the occupied districts of Luhansk oblast.

In September 2022, they initiated the voting for it and then appealed to the terrorist leader Pasichnyk to sign the illegal document.

One of the suspects is a relative of ‘Luhansk mayor’, who is under sanctions of Ukraine and Western states for particularly serious crimes.

According to the investigation, all five offenders after 2014 began to cooperate with the local occupation administration of russia.

For this, they received ‘mandates’ in the ‘LNR people’s council’ established by the aggressor.

Being in ‘positions’, they contributed to strengthening of the kremlin regime in the region and supported the activities of illegal armed groups against Ukrainian troops.

After the start of the full-scale invasion, the collaborators carried out moscow’s tasks to prepare and conduct a fake plebiscite.

In addition to adoption of illegal ‘acts’, they took part in the staged reports of russian propagandists, in which they called to ‘vote’ for joining russia.

They also travelled to ‘electoral districts’, where they personally urged residents to make their ‘choice’ in favour of the aggressor state.

In the organization of the sham referendum, they were ‘helped’ by supervisors - representatives of putin’s party united russia and kremlin PR-technologists.

The 5 ‘council members’ have been notified of suspicion under the Articles of the CCU:

• 111-1.5 (collaboration);
• 110.2 (encroachment on Ukraine’s territorial integrity and inviolability).

The suspects are hiding in the temporarily occupied territory of Luhansk region.

However, the SSU has established their locations and is working to bring the perpetrators to justice for crimes against Ukraine.

The SSU Office in Donetsk and Luhansk regions carried out the investigation under the procedural supervision of Luhansk Region Prosecutor’s Office.