The Security Service of Ukraine said it has uncovered the embezzlement of more than UAH 12 million in the procurement of FPV drones for the defenders of Kharkiv.
“The Military Counterintelligence Department, in cooperation with the Security Service’s Department for the Protection of National Statehood, with the support of the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine and the Commander of the Territorial Defence Forces of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, uncovered a group of individuals who misappropriated budget funds during the procurement of unmanned systems for the Ukrainian army,” the agency’s press service said.
It was established that the organiser of the scheme was a former Territorial Defence brigade commander in Kyiv Region, who held the post at the time the money was stolen.
According to the case materials, he arranged the purchase of 580 FPV drones worth more than UAH 12 million in total, involving other individuals in the scheme. The unmanned aircraft were then supposed to be delivered to Ukrainian Armed Forces soldiers on the Kharkiv axis.
However, according to available information, the weapons supply contracts were fictitious. Not a single one of the “contracted” unmanned aircraft reached Ukrainian defenders, which had a negative impact on the fulfilment of tasks on the front line.
Despite this, the perpetrators arranged the paperwork as if the drones had been handed over to the military. In particular, the official submitted forged UAV handover and acceptance certificates for signature without any actual delivery.
Later, the suspect demanded that personnel conceal the absence of the unmanned aircraft during an inspection and process the write-off of the equipment as lost on the battlefield.
SBU officers detained the official at his place of service along with three other individuals.
In accordance with an order by the Commander of the Territorial Defence Forces of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, the suspect was removed from his post.
Investigators from the SBU’s Main Investigative Department served the detainees with a notice of suspicion under Part 2 of Article 114-1 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine (obstructing the lawful activities of the Armed Forces of Ukraine and other military formations).
The investigation is ongoing to bring to justice all those involved in the scheme.