Fraudsters Target Families of POWs, Offering Fake Legal Help for Unnecessary Fees

Fraudsters are devising new schemes to extort money from the families of prisoners of war, particularly by offering unnecessary legal services, according to a recent warning.

This was reported by the Coordination Headquarters for the Treatment of Prisoners of War on December 31.

“People are being promised, among other things, a change of status from ‘missing in action’ to ‘captured.’ Although all statuses entitle families to the same payments and involvement in search and recovery efforts, such costly legal ‘services’ are often unnecessary,” the statement said.

The Headquarters emphasized that no “trusted acquaintances,” who supposedly have connections with security and defense forces, even those recommended by family groups or by "someone who has been in captivity," have any real influence or authority to provide assistance.

“Usually, these fraudsters approach you under false pretenses. Families end up losing tens or even hundreds of thousands of hryvnias, paying for things like ‘arranging calls,’ ‘sending packages,’ or ‘adding names to lists,’” the Headquarters clarified.

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War in Ukraine

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It was emphasized that only the Coordination Headquarters has full information and offers all the necessary services, including legal, consulting, and psychological support, completely free of charge.

Earlier, it was reported that Russian soldier voluntarily surrendered to Ukrainian forces in the Kharkiv region after posting handwritten signs on a house requesting to be taken prisoner.

The 16th Army Corps of Ukraine reported that the soldier wrote on a piece of cardboard in Russian: “Please take me prisoner, I want to live.” The corps described the incident as a pre-New Year plea, and Ukrainian troops responded accordingly.

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