Ukraine’s anti-corruption agencies allege that a criminal organization paid senior officials in three law-enforcement bodies to keep illegal businesses operating, raising questions about accountability within institutions responsible for enforcing the law.
The National Anti-Corruption Bureau (NABU) and Specialized Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office (SAPO) announced the allegations Nov. 4. NABU said investigators had implicated at least 12 people, but did not identify them or say how many had been formally charged. It described the alleged leader as a man with multiple previous convictions who recruited serving senior officials from the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU), the National Police and the Office of the Prosecutor General.
NABU alleged the network protected call centers targeting Ukrainian and foreign citizens, sold narcotics and produced counterfeit cigarettes and forged foreign currency. The bureau also accused the group of planning assaults and kidnappings, along with other acts that caused bodily injuries.
SBU head Oleksandr Poklad said he dismissed two senior SBU officers implicated in the NABU probe and that the service was assisting with procedural actions. “The SSU expects a transparent, objective, and impartial investigation,” he said.
The National Police said it suspended officers who had faced investigative measures while an internal inquiry proceeds, and urged the public to avoid premature conclusions. Reuters reported that the Prosecutor General’s Office was ready to cooperate and had not known about the alleged illegal activity.
NABU’s Oct. 22 update on Operation Carthage said monthly payments allegedly secured protection from prosecution for owners of fraudulent call centers. It reported more than 1 billion Ukrainian hryvnias in documented illicit benefits but did not specify the period covered. The Nov. 4 announcement did not say whether that earlier total included all the newly described allegations.
Reuters reported that the wider probe first surfaced in September. It also reported that former Prosecutor General Ruslan Kravchenko resigned after a subordinate was accused of helping operate call centers, and said Kravchenko was not charged.
NABU said those implicated are presumed innocent unless found guilty by a court and that efforts to identify other people involved are continuing.
