Nearly UAH 7 million in damages: ESBU uncovers embezzlement scheme at State Defense Enterprise

 Detectives of the Territorial Office of the ESBU in Kyiv have uncovered a scheme for the embezzlement of funds from a defense industry enterprise during the procurement of industrial equipment. Damages to the state amount to nearly UAH 7 million.

The investigation established that one of the managers of the state-owned enterprise, using his official position, organized the purchase of production equipment at an inflated price. This refers to a table for a shaft furnace, which is used in the technological process and requires urgent replacement.

To create the appearance of a competitive procurement process, controlled companies were engaged. They provided commercial proposals with nearly identical but significantly inflated prices. The expected purchase cost was established based on these documents.

Subsequently, the state enterprise conducted the procurement through the Prozorro electronic system and signed a contract with the company that offered the "lowest" price among the submitted bids. Following this, the funds were transferred to the supplier in full.

At the same time, a conducted expert evaluation showed that the market value of the equipment was significantly lower. The difference between the actual price and the amount paid totaled nearly UAH 7 million. Thus, the state-owned enterprise suffered damages on an especially large scale.

The official's actions have been classified under Part 5, Article 191 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine (embezzlement of property through abuse of office, committed by prior conspiracy by a group of persons and on an especially large scale).

The investigation is ongoing. ESBU detectives are establishing the full circle of individuals involved in the implementation of the scheme and are verifying other possible episodes.

Procedural guidance is provided by the Office of the Prosecutor General.