Kyiv City Council corruption scandal: $7 million found during searches
10 February 23:20
Employees of the National Anti-Corruption Bureau of Ukraine (NABU), together with the Specialized Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office (SAP), conducted searches in the Kyiv City Council. During the investigation, law enforcement officers found $7 million in cash. This was reported by the NABU, Komersant ukrainskyi reports
As part of the investigation, more than $6.4 million, 630 thousand euros, and 800 thousand hryvnias were found in bank boxes.
The money was seized, and the investigation is ongoing.
The searches were conducted as part of Operation Clean City. Back on February 6, the NABU and the Specialized Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office reported that they had conducted a large-scale operation against corruption in the land and budget sectors of Kyiv.
According to the investigation, the criminal organization was headed by a media-famous former deputy of the Kyiv City Council.
It should be noted that law enforcement officers did not mention his name, but before that, Kyiv businessman Denys Komarnytsky, who was previously the leader of the Leonid Chernovetsky Bloc faction, was searched. The fact that it is him who is being searched was reported and the Anti-Corruption Action Center.
Law enforcement officers have already detained 7 members of the criminal organization. A total of 10 people have been notified of suspicion.
The persons involved in the case
The suspects in the corruption scheme are:
- a former deputy of the Kyiv City Council – organizer of the criminal group;
- deputy Head of the Kyiv City State Administration;
- chairman and members of the Kyiv City Council Standing Committee on Architecture, Urban Development and Land Relations;
- current deputies of the Kyiv City Council;
- heads of municipal enterprises;
- four other persons involved in the fraud.
Mechanism of the scheme
The criminal group acted according to a well-established scheme:
- Search for attractive land plots in Kyiv.
- Falsification of documents – registration of ownership of non-existent buildings on these plots.
- Submitting applications to the Kyiv City Council for the transfer of land for the “maintenance” of such buildings without bidding.
- Lobbying decisions through Kyiv City Council members and KCSA officials.
- Obtaining illegal benefits in the form of money and real estate.
City council members and KCSA officials, some of whom were members of the criminal organization and some of whom were under its influence, ensured that decisions were made to grant the relevant land rights, for which they received undue benefits in the form of money and real estate.
