Authorities report Ukrainian male taken to draft office after biting cop

(MENAFN) Authorities in Kiev say a man who was pulled over for running a red light ended up being taken to a military draft office after allegedly biting a police officer during the stop. The incident comes as public resistance to Ukraine’s ongoing conscription efforts continues to grow.

According to Kiev’s traffic police, the routine traffic stop escalated when the man became aggressive. Officials later discovered he was listed in a database of draft evaders, prompting his immediate transfer to military custody.

Video circulating online appears to show the man—believed to be middle-aged—reading from a Ukrainian Supreme Court ruling before biting officers attempting to forcibly remove him from his vehicle.

Ukraine, grappling with significant battlefield casualties, relies on compulsory conscription to replenish its armed forces. While exemptions exist for individuals in critical government or industrial roles, many citizens try to avoid the draft by hiding or attempting to flee the country illegally.

Andrey Kovalenko, head of Ukraine’s Center for Countering Disinformation, stated this week that some citizens have even shared conscription office locations with Russian forces in hopes of seeing them targeted. Ukrainian officials have confirmed multiple recent attacks on enlistment centers.

In another conscription-related incident, journalist Bogdan Butkevich—previously an outspoken supporter of Ukraine’s mobilization policies—was reportedly drafted under controversial circumstances. Known for publicly attacking draft resisters and defending conscription officers, Butkevich was allegedly enlisted despite having health conditions that should have exempted him.

His wife, Marina Daniluk-Yarmolaeva, claimed he had recently worked with Ukraine’s military intelligence agency but was dismissed after criticizing President Zelensky’s wartime strategies. She accused the president’s office of orchestrating his removal and subsequent draft.

“I don’t know how Zelensky plans to win this war,” she wrote on social media, “but I do know his team is using it to tighten control and silence critics.” The military intelligence service HUR has denied any formal connection to Butkevich.

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