Six people, including two former deputies of the Odesa Regional Council and the former chairman of the board of the Ukrainian Danube Shipping Company, have been served with a notice of suspicion of seizing 32 vessels, converting them into 12 barges, and misappropriating them. UNN reports this with reference to the SAPO.
As UNN has learned, citing its own sources, these are former deputies of the Odesa Regional Council Viktor Baransky, Vitaliy Sautenkov and former chairman of the board of UDP Dmytro Barinov.
On January 25, 2024, on behalf of the Head of the SAPO, the prosecutor served a notice of suspicion to 2 former deputies of the Odesa Regional Council who organized a criminal scheme, the implementation of which led to the loss of 32 vessels belonging to the Ukrainian Danube Shipping Company (hereinafter referred to as "UDP") and caused losses in the amount of UAH 82.654 million
It is reported that also under the procedural guidance of SAPO prosecutors, NABU detectives served suspicion notices to 4 more participants in the criminal scheme, namely the former chairman of the board of UDP PrJSC and 3 employees of legal entities controlled by deputies.
The actions of the suspects are qualified under Part 5 of Art. 191 (as amended on 12.06.2018); Part 4 of Art. 190 (as amended on 09.11.2018) and Part 3 of Art. 209 (as amended on 28.04.2020) of the Criminal Code of Ukraine, depending on the role and participation of each in the implementation of the criminal scheme.
"As part of the pre-trial investigation conducted by NABU detectives with the operational support of the SBU, it was established that in early August 2017, a deputy of the Odesa Regional Council had a criminal intent to seize someone else's property, namely the lights of PJSC UDP, for the further construction of larger barges in size and capacity, necessary for the economic activities of the companies under his control," the SAPO informs.
The SAPO states that to implement this crime, the person involved another deputy of the regional council, as well as the chairman of the board of UDP PrJSC and other controlled persons, with a clear division of functions of each participant in the scheme.
"Acting in accordance with the scheme, the criminals ensured the conclusion of charter agreements with a predetermined company that was not personally connected either with the organizers of the crime or with the companies they controlled," the statement said.
It is also reported that in November 2017, in accordance with the agreement, 18 lighters worth more than UAH 44.3 million were transferred to this company. Later, from June to July 2018, having misled the new management of UDP, the offenders entered into additional agreements on the transfer of another 14 lighter trucks worth UAH 38.35 million.
According to the investigation, 32 lighters were subsequently transported to the Republic of Turkey, where they were rebuilt into 12 larger barges. After that, the barges were towed to Ukraine and registered to controlled companies.
"It should be noted that with the assistance of the SAPO and the NABU, 12 newly built barges were transferred to the management of the ARMA," the SAPO informs.