Detectives of the Economic Security Bureau of Ukraine seized 166,000 tons of strategic raw material - iron ore owned by a foreign company. A non-resident legal entity registered in an EU country together with other Russian companies affiliated with a citizen of the Russian Federation - an oligarch close to the President of Russia. The estimated value of the seized ore is about 1.8 billion UAH equivalent (approximately 45,000,000 US dollars).

ESBU employees exposed the mentioned company in tax evasion in particularly large amounts. It was established that in the course of 2021-2022 she declared the transfer of iron ore for a total amount of over UAH 1.3 billion through the territory of Ukraine to Asian countries in the transit customs regime. In order to avoid paying taxes, fees and other mandatory payments, which are paid when importing goods to the territory of Ukraine, company officials used the so-called "interrupted transit" mechanism. Fictitious documents on the export of ore outside of Ukraine were drawn up. In fact, company officials tried to ship goods to business entities - residents of Ukraine. Thus the losses to the budget of our state from the evasion of the payment of value added tax amount to more than 118 million UAH.

166,000 tons of iron ore belonging to the mentioned company were seized in the course of operational investigative measures in several seaports of Ukraine.

"We understand that the percentage of penetration of Russian capital into our economy is very high. We make sure of this every time we discover these assets. Within the limits of its authority, the ESBU investigates offences in the economic sphere of companies directly or indirectly connected with Russia and Belarus, and seizes their goods, funds, securities, assets, etc. We are making efforts to ensure that this property and funds received from the activities of enterprises on the territory of Ukraine connected with citizens of enemy states do not work for a terrorist country. They should have benefited our state, territorial communities, and our Armed Forces. In the future, the arrested ore will be transferred to the Agency for Search and Management of Assets (ARMA)", said Director of ESBU Vadym Melnyk.

Pre-trial investigation in criminal proceedings on grounds of violation of part 3 of Article 212 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine (evasion of the payment of taxes, fees, mandatory payments in particularly large amounts) are carried out by detectives of the main unit of detectives of the ESBU under the procedural guidance of prosecutors of the Office of the Prosecutor General and operational support of employees of the Security Service of Ukraine.

For reference: the mentioned Russian pro-Kremlin oligarch, a billionaire close to the President of the Russian Federation Volodymyr Putin. After Russia invaded the territory of Ukraine on February 24, 2022, it was included in the sanctions lists of the United States and the European Union. The oligarch is banned from entering the EU countries, and all his assets are "frozen". The USA and EU countries have imposed sanctions on yachts, private planes, a villa, and 6 companies that belong to the oligarch's assets in the amount of more than 60 million euros.

On October 19, 2022, the President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky by Decree No. 726/2022 put into effect the decision of the National Security and Defence Council of Ukraine dated October 19, 2022 "On the application and introduction of changes to personal special economic and other restrictive measures (sanctions)", according to which personal restrictive measures (sanctions) have been applied to the Russian oligarch, including blocking of assets - temporary deprivation of the right to use and dispose of assets belonging to a natural or legal person, as well as assets to which such a person can directly or indirectly (through other natural or legal persons) perform actions identical in content to the exercise of the right to dispose of them, as well as the complete cessation of transit of resources, flights and transportation through the territory of Ukraine.