Farmer exposed for keeping four people in slave labor

In the Khmelnytskyi district, law enforcement officers discovered a 61-year-old man who was recruiting people to work on his agricultural enterprise, abusing their vulnerability. Among the victims were people who had lost their homes, jobs, or loved ones due to the war. He promised stable earnings, accommodation, and food, but in reality, he forced them to work for free, taking away their documents and restricting their freedom of movement.

The press service of the Vinnytsia regional police reported this.

According to the investigation, under the guise of official employment, the man took away the documents from the mercenaries, did not return them, and constantly monitored their movements outside the farm. Work on the farm was unpaid, which effectively put people in conditions of labor slavery.

In June 2025, employees of the migration police department, together with investigators from the Main Department of the National Police in the Vinnytsia region, conducted a search and released four people who had suffered from the farmer’s actions. Material evidence of his criminal acts was also seized.

Under the procedural supervision of the Vinnytsia Regional Prosecutor’s Office, the farmer was charged under Articles 149, Part 1 and Part 2 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine, which provide for recruitment, harboring, and trafficking in persons for exploitation, committed using deception and the vulnerable position of persons.

The pre-trial investigation is ongoing.