The National Anti-Corruption Bureau of Ukraine (NABU), together with the Office of the Prosecutor General, has exposed the activities of a criminal group that involved one of the officials of the Office of the Prosecutor General. According to the investigation, the participants in the scheme were engaged in "protecting" (providing a "roof" over) a network of fraudulent call centers and laundering property obtained through criminal means. This is reported by RBC-Ukraine, citing anti-corruption agencies.
The "Protection" and Laundering Scheme
According to the investigation materials, the criminal organization, which, according to the detectives' version, was headed by an official of the Office of the Prosecutor General, provided protection (a "roof") for an entire network of fraudulent call centers. In parallel, the participants in the scheme were engaged in laundering assets obtained through criminal means. Law enforcement agencies noted that more detailed information on the case would be provided later.
The Position of the Office of the Prosecutor General
The Office of the Prosecutor General stated its readiness to provide full cooperation and all necessary information to the anti-corruption agencies within the framework of the law, so that the relevant episode receives an objective legal assessment. The employee under investigation will be suspended from performing official duties for the duration of the pre-trial investigation. The agency also emphasized that the systematic fight against fraudulent schemes continues.
Scale of Work over 12 Months
According to law enforcement, extensive work has been carried out over the past 12 months to eliminate illegal organizations. Currently, 147 criminal cases are under investigation, more than 183 people have been notified of suspicion, and indictments have already been sent to court for 93 people. The established amount of damage to victims, according to the investigation, reaches tens of millions of hryvnias.
Contradictory Data
Publications on the case contain conflicting information on the amount of damage. The main investigation materials use the phrase "tens of millions of hryvnias," while a number of media outlets (in particular, according to ridus.ru) characterize the exposed fraud at 400,000 euros. These figures are not identical and may reflect either different episodes or different methodologies for calculating the damage. In addition, in the context of the same network of call centers, certain sources (rus.delfi.lv) mention a seized vehicle fleet worth about 1 million dollars and significant amounts of cash, as well as facts of fraud against citizens of third countries, which has not yet been confirmed in the main statements of the agencies.
Context: Other Operations
Law enforcement continue to systematically expose officials and schemes in state bodies. In particular, as part of the "Forrest Gump" operation, NABU notified a former deputy of the Dnipropetrovsk Regional Council of the VII convocation, who is an influential businessman, of suspicion. During another high-profile operation, "Themis," NABU and the Specialized Anti-Corruption Prosecutor's Office (SAPO) exposed a large-scale raiding scheme under which the members of the group illegally appropriated real estate and business assets.
