On 22 September 2026, the Odessa Regional Police reported the results of the second phase of the ‘Gentlemen’ special operation in the region: According to the authorities, law enforcement officers carried out nearly 30 authorised searches, seized plants and substances, sent them for forensic analysis, and announced the dismantling of four drug laboratories. The official statement was published on the website of the Main Directorate of the National Police in the Odesa region at 15:30; this is the primary source of information regarding the Odesa operation. Odesa Regional Police Headquarters.
According to the police, the operations took place ‘across the entire region’. They involved officers from the Anti-Drug Crime Department of the Main Directorate of the National Police in the Odesa region and criminal investigation officers from local police units. Odesa Regional Police Headquarters. The stated aim of the second phase is to identify and dismantle illegal cannabis and opium poppy crops, as well as to prevent raw materials for drugs from entering the black market Odesa Regional Police Headquarters.
What exactly did the Odessa Regional Police say?
The regional press release states that law enforcement officers documented evidence of the illegal cultivation of cannabis and opium poppies, and during the course of their investigations seized over 1.5 kg of cannabis and poppy straw, hundreds of cannabis plants, tablets containing narcotic substances, mobile phones, laptops, grow boxes and other material evidence Odesa Regional Police Headquarters.
Key caveat: the police specifically noted that all plants and substances have been sent for forensic analysis Odesa Regional Police Headquarters. This means that the precise legal assessment of some of the seized items and any possible additional charges will depend on the results of forensic examinations, whilst the published figures should be interpreted as the investigation’s position at the time of the announcement.
According to the Main Directorate of the National Police, local police units have initiated criminal proceedings in connection with these incidents under Articles 309, 307 and 310 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine: unlawful handling of narcotic drugs without the intention to sell; the unlawful production, manufacture, acquisition, storage, transport, dispatch or sale of narcotic substances; and the sowing or cultivation of opium poppies or cannabis Odesa Regional Police Headquarters.
Procedural status as at 22 September: 11 suspects have been notified that they are under suspicion under Article 310 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine. The police emphasise that the question of additional charges will be decided following expert analyses, and the investigation is continuing under the procedural supervision of the Odessa and district prosecutors’ offices. Odesa Regional Police HeadquartersThere is no information in verified publications regarding court sentences in connection with this incident.
How does the Odessa operation fit into the nationwide operation?
On the same day, the National Police headquarters summarised the results of the two phases of Operation ‘Gentlemen’. According to the National Police of Ukraine, over the course of the two phases, 968 searches were carried out across the country, 56,995 cannabis plants and 1,010 kg of cannabis were seized, 23 ‘grow box’-type laboratories were dismantled, 96 people were detained, and 181 suspects were notified that they were under investigation National Police of Ukraine.
According to the National Police Headquarters, the second phase took place in September 2026: law enforcement officers carried out a further 532 searches across 23 regions and in Kyiv, seizing over 40,000 cannabis plants, 838 kg of cannabis, 4.7 kg of amphetamine, around 2 kg of alpha-PVP, as well as mephedrone, methamphetamine, poppy straw and medicines containing narcotics National Police of UkraineAgainst this backdrop, the four laboratories in Odesa account for a third of the 12 ‘grow-box’ laboratories that the police stated had been dismantled specifically during the second phase National Police of Ukraine.
According to the National Police Headquarters, the operation was initiated by the Department for Combating Drug Crime and the Main Investigation Directorate of the National Police, in coordination with the Office of the Prosecutor General; the Odessa region is listed among the regions where the operation took place. National Police of Ukraine.
This has been confirmed by third-party reports
No independent court documents relating to the Odessa operation have been found through an open search. Regional media outlets have reported on the police statement: for example, Bessarabia.UA stated on 22 September that it was reporting with reference to the Main Directorate of the National Police in the Odesa region, whilst ‘Tribuna’ also repeated the key figures on 24 September — four laboratories, nearly 30 searches, over 1.5 kg of cannabis and poppy straw, and 11 suspects charged under Article 310 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine Bessarabia.UA Tribuna. These publications serve as a record of the public dissemination of the news, but do not replace the original investigation or court documents.
The position of the suspects or their defence has not been published in verified open sources. Therefore, this report does not establish the guilt of any specific individuals: it refers to the police’s version of events and the current procedural status – namely, the notification of suspicion, the ongoing investigation and the pending expert analyses.
