A detectives of the Economic Security Bureau of Ukraine, in accordance with the court order, handed over almost 170,000 tons of iron ore with an estimated value of UAH 1.8 billion to the National Agency for Identification, Search and Management of Assets Obtained from Corruption and Other Crimes (ARMA).

The investigation established the location of underground warehouses of the Russian Federation on the territory of several seaports in the Odesa region. Strategic raw materials were stored on them, which later, representatives of the aggressor country tried to illegally transport by sea vessels to the territory of Russia.

These minerals are indirectly owned by an oligarch close to the Russian president through a non-resident company. After Russia's invasion of Ukraine on February 24, 2022, this pro-Kremlin billionaire was sanctioned by the National Security Council of Ukraine, the United States, and the European Union.

Earlier, the ESBU employees exposed the mentioned company in tax evasion in particularly large amounts.

It was established that during 2021-2022, she declared the movement of iron ore through the territory of Ukraine to Asian countries, in the customs regime of "transit". In order to avoid paying taxes, duties and other mandatory payments, which are paid when importing goods into 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. Thus, as a result of the evasion of the payment of the value added tax, losses were caused to the budget of our state in the amount of more than UAH 118 million.

ESBU employees continue to identify assets directly or indirectly owned or linked to citizens of Russia and Belarus. Currently, the total value of such assets seized by the ESBU detectives is over UAH 41 billion.