Law enforcement officers have uncovered a criminal organisation whose members allegedly misappropriated funds from state forestry enterprises under the guise of logging operations.
This was reported by the Prosecutor General’s Office.
According to the investigation, in 2023–2025 a company controlled by the organisation signed contracts with branches of state forestry enterprises in Cherkasy, Kirovohrad and Vinnytsya Regions totalling UAH 178.5m.
At the same time, investigators say the company had neither staff nor the necessary equipment to carry out logging work.
According to investigators, the scheme was organised by an entrepreneur from the Cherkasy Region who had connections within a state forestry enterprise. He brought into the criminal organisation the head of a forestry unit, foresters and an accountant — eight people in total.
The accountant prepared documents for the company to take part in auctions and to sign contracts. Forestry enterprise employees signed off on work allegedly completed, after which the state enterprises transferred funds to the private company.
The money was then funnelled out through around 20 sole proprietors, converted into cash and distributed among members of the organisation.
One identified episode concerns the misappropriation of UAH 9.2m from a branch of a forestry enterprise in the Vinnytsya Region. Expert examinations are ongoing in relation to other episodes, so the final amount of losses is still being determined.
As part of the investigation, more than 30 searches were carried out across three Regions. Six suspects were detained.
The organiser and seven members of the criminal organisation were served with notices of suspicion under Part 5 of Article 191, Part 2 of Article 209, and Parts 1–3 of Article 255 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine.
The State Bureau of Investigation adds that the organiser was the founder and director of a company that had no employees and no equipment required to carry out logging operations. At the prosecution’s request, the organiser and three alleged accomplices were remanded in custody with the option of release on bail.
Under Article 62 of the Constitution of Ukraine, a person is presumed innocent until proven guilty by a court’s conviction.