ESBU in Zakarpattia exposes a multi-million tax evasion scheme in international bus transportation

 Detectives of the Territorial Office of the ESBU in the Zakarpattia region have uncovered a multi-million dollar tax evasion scheme organized by officials of a carrier company providing regular international bus services.

The investigation established that the company operated passenger transport from Ukraine to the Czech Republic, Poland, and Slovakia, and vice versa. Drivers received a portion of the ticket payments in cash directly during passenger boarding.

To disguise the scheme, tickets were formally sold online through a network of controlled individual entrepreneurs. While passengers booked them online, the actual payment was made during the trip. These cash receipts were not reflected in the company's tax reports, allowing them to evade taxes.

According to preliminary data, up to 100 tickets could be sold daily using this method. As a result, the state budget suffered losses amounting to millions of hryvnias.

As part of the pre-trial investigation, ESBU detectives conducted a series of authorized searches. Investigative actions are ongoing.

Criminal proceedings are being investigated under Articles 212 and 209 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine (tax evasion and money laundering of proceeds obtained through crime).

Operational support is provided by the Strategic Investigations Department in the Zakarpattia region of the National Police of Ukraine. Procedural oversight is managed by the Zakarpattia Regional Prosecutor's Office.