Recruitment officials in western Ukraine allegedly abducted and beat men to force them into military service

Five Ukrainian military recruitment officials have been arrested on suspicion of abducting and torturing men to force them into military service, the State Bureau of Investigation (DBR) has announced.

According to investigators, the officials rounded up men on the streets of a small town in western Ukraine’s Chernovtsy Region and forcibly took them to a recruitment center, where they were beaten, threatened, and subjected to further abuse.

One victim was allegedly shot in the leg and forced to extract the bullet himself after officers denied him medical care.

In another case, recruitment officers allegedly stalked and abducted a war veteran over a personal dispute.

Investigators also uncovered a bribery scheme in which recruitment officials allegedly extorted over $6,000 in exchange for a detainee’s release.

The five suspects face various charges, including torture, kidnapping, unlawful…