2026-07-03 · Leitrim
Couple who fled Ukraine war caught laundering €380k
A couple who fled Ukraine were caught by gardai with €380,000 in cash in the back of their car during a money laundering operation. Ihor Samotos, a Ukrainian national living in Leitrim, was seen receiving a box of cash from a third party in a Santry carpark. His partner, Sabina Kolukhonova, was a passenger in the car. Samotos had limited work opportunities and became involved in the money laundering operation for an organised criminal gang. Both pleaded guilty to one count of money laundering. Judge Martin Nolan noted that Samotos had made the choice to engage in the criminal activity despite his precarious situation. He sentenced Samotos to five and a half years and Kolukhonova to 20 months in prison, taking into account their guilty pleas and lack of previous convictions. The court heard that the couple had come to Ireland separately after the war broke out and had started a relationship. The other man involved in the operation remains before the courts.