BEB uncovered a scheme for exporting industrial components to Russia: how the supply logistics worked
4 March 19:03
The Economic Security Bureau of Ukraine has completed a pre-trial investigation into a group of individuals in the Kyiv region suspected of organizing a scheme to supply industrial equipment to Russia after the start of the full-scale invasion.
The indictment has already been sent to court, according to "Komersant Ukrainian".
According to the investigation, the management of one of the enterprises did not terminate its economic relations with the aggressor state in 2022. Instead, a mechanism was created that allowed it to continue deliveries and make a profit despite martial law and prohibitions.
What exactly was exported
The object of illegal export was limit switches — elements of industrial equipment that are used, in particular, in the state sector of the Russian economy. According to the BEB, the total value of the smuggled products is about UAH 9 million.
How the scheme worked
To conceal the final destination of the goods, the suspects organized a multi-level logistics scheme:
- registration of deliveries through a controlled company in the Middle East;
- further transit through European Union countries;
- final delivery to Russia.
Thus, the products were not formally sent directly from Ukraine to Russia, which made it possible to conceal the real recipient.
Qualification and punishment
The suspects have been notified of their suspicion under Part 2 of Article 28 and Part 1 of Article 111-2 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine — aiding an aggressor state, committed by prior conspiracy by a group of persons.
The article provides for up to 12 years of imprisonment with confiscation of property.
The transfer of the indictment to the court means the completion of the investigative stage and the transition of the case to the trial phase.
Recently, the BEB also reported on the completion of an investigation in the Lviv region into tax evasion — in this case, more than UAH 13 million in losses were reimbursed to the state.
