Police in Ukraine, Kazakhstan and Albania have dismantled two recruitment cells of the «Khimprom» criminal network, which were using fake online job adverts to recruit people for the drug trade. Seven people, including the organisers of the illegal activities and the recruiters, were arrested. Law enforcement officers also seized digital evidence, narcotic mixtures and pre-packaged sachets.
Briefly about the main points
- Recruitment into the drug network took place via fake job adverts on the internet.
- The candidates were promised free accommodation and meals.
- Investigators have identified 31 Telegram shops and hundreds of people who had been recruited.
- In Kazakhstan, 17 members of a criminal gang were arrested during an operation.
- The final stage involved 35 searches in Kyiv and five regions.
Job vacancies were advertised for all levels of the drug trade
According to the National Police, the recruitment network was set up by a 36-year-old Russian citizen, known by the alias «The Mexican», who is currently in hiding abroad. The operators call centres They posted fake job adverts and offered candidates «free» accommodation and meals.
They recruited people to work as HR managers and operators, as well as chemists, riggers, couriers, logistics staff, warehouse workers and postal workers. The candidates were then distributed amongst the various branches of the criminal network.
As part of the operation, two recruitment cells were dismantled
An international special operation began in August 2025 and spanned Ukraine, Kazakhstan and Albania. Law enforcement agencies identified the organisers of the scheme, its operatives, hundreds of recruited individuals and 31 Telegram shops.
In May 2026, recruitment call centres in Kyiv and the surrounding region were shut down, and 27 active members of «Khimprom» were identified. In July, a further 17 members of the criminal organisation were arrested in Kazakhstan. The final stage involved 35 searches in Kyiv and five regions of Ukraine.
Among the seven people arrested are the organisers of the illegal activities and recruiters. Law enforcement officers seized around 4,000 pieces of digital evidence, 3,600 joints, 24 kilograms of a mixture used to manufacture them containing the synthetic cannabinoid PINACA, and over 1,900 pre-packaged sachets. These are the results of the dismantling of two recruitment cells, not the entire «Khimprom» network.
