Scammers exploit Ukraine prisoner exchange, claiming freed soldier identities to swindle cash

On Saturday, Ukrainian Pravda, a news portal, reported that the coordination team had raised an alarm about swindlers who establish counterfeit profiles on social media. They portray themselves as soldiers who have recently regained their freedom, promising to provide information about the military personnel they met in captivity. Subsequently, they request money under a range of pretenses.

On the deceitful profiles, you can discover photos and video footage from a legitimate prisoner exchange on January 3 and other similar undertakings. The coordination team urges the public to take information about prisoners solely from official sources.

On January 3 of the current year, Ukraine and Russia carried out the most extensive exchange of war and civilian prisoners to date. More than 200 Ukrainian citizens, both men and women, were freed from Russian captivity. Concurrently, Kyiv transferred 248 detained Russian citizens to Russia. The coordination team in Kyiv emphasized that nearly all released prisoners claim to have been tormented by the Russians while in captivity.