Police officers and soldiers of the special police regiment have found two persons near the village of Kotovske (Kyiv region) who tried to bring a large amount of mushrooms out of the Chornobyl exclusion zone.
“Two residents of Kyiv region explained to law enforcement officers that they had penetrated the closed territory in order to collect mushrooms for their own consumption. Dosimetry control showed that the permissible level of radioactive elements in mushrooms exceeds the permissible norm by 30 times,” the press service of the Ukrainian National Police’s main office in Kyiv region reported on Sept. 14.
Administrative protocols were filed against the individuals for penetration into the exclusion zone without any permit under Article 46-1 (violation of the requirements of the radiation safety regime in the areas exposed to radioactive contamination) of the Code of Administrative Offenses.
Due to the attempted transfer of forest mushrooms outside the exclusion zone the police opened criminal proceedings under Article 267-1 (violation of the requirements of the radiation safety regime) of the Criminal Code of Ukraine. The article foresees a fine of 50 to 80 non-taxable minimum incomes of citizens or restriction of freedom for a period of one to three years, or imprisonment for the same term. The investigation is underway.
