The latest corruption scandals in the Bureau of Economic Security of Ukraine, involving the exposure of employees of this law enforcement agency for bribery and possible trading in criminal proceedings, are causing outrage among Ukrainians. Kyiv residents and guests of the capital surveyed by UNN believe that the BES needs an independent audit, cleansing, and reset.
Corruption in the BES
According to Prosecutor General Ruslan Kravchenko, in two separate criminal proceedings, a senior detective of the territorial department of the BES in Kyiv region and an analyst of the central office of the Bureau were exposed for using their official position to obtain undue advantage.
One, according to the investigation, demanded $15,000 from a man previously involved in a case concerning the production and sale of counterfeit money, in exchange for not bringing him to criminal responsibility again. The other promised a company representative to assist in obtaining a fuel storage license through his connections in the tax service for $2,000.
"A system that is supposed to protect the state's economy cannot be a place for those who try to use their position for personal enrichment," stated Prosecutor General Ruslan Kravchenko.
People's deputies surveyed by UNN speak about the need for an audit of the criminal proceedings investigated by the BES for signs of being commissioned. They also point out the need to reset and cleanse the law enforcement agency.
Furthermore, the Verkhovna Rada Committee on Finance, Tax and Customs Policy sharply criticized the work of the Bureau of Economic Security based on the review of its report for 2025.
Members of the parliamentary committee were dissatisfied not only with the quality of the reporting, but also certain presented indicators raised doubts about their reliability. Deputies noted the low efficiency of the BES, stating that out of nearly 6,900 criminal proceedings investigated by the BES in 2025, suspicions were announced in only 12.9% of cases, and 13.1% of cases, or 904 criminal proceedings, were sent to court.
Moreover, the effectiveness of some units, according to committee members, is impossible to assess at all.
At the same time, the head of the parliamentary committee, Danylo Hetmantsev, publicly questioned the data presented by the head of the BES, Oleksandr Tsyvinskyi, regarding the return of funds to the budget. Law enforcement officers tried to present reimbursements for 2022-2024 as new achievements. According to Hetmantsev, the amount of reimbursement in 2025 was only about UAH 47 million, not UAH 3.8 billion, as the BES tried to assure.
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Following the review, deputies recommended that the BES eliminate the identified shortcomings and increase the level of transparency of its work. Against the backdrop of corruption scandals and criticism from the relevant parliamentary committee, society's demands for an independent audit and reset of the Bureau of Economic Security are growing louder.
Corruption remains a painful topic
The majority of respondents negatively assessed the facts of exposing BES employees for receiving undue advantage. At the same time, some note that not only the fact of the crime itself is important, but also the state's ability to detect it and punish the guilty.
"Of course, it is shameful that such facts exist, but if such crimes are exposed and brought to court, then it is normal," one respondent noted.
Other respondents emphasize that the problem of bribery in Ukraine remains systemic and concerns not only individual bodies.
"There is generally a big problem with bribes in the country, I would say. But at the official level, they are fighting them and, I think, they are making every effort to reduce this. But as long as there are people who give bribes, there will be those who take them," a Kyiv resident believes.
Some citizens are convinced that to reduce the level of corruption, it is necessary to create decent working conditions for civil servants, including employees of the BES.
Independent audit and reset
The surveyed citizens are confident that after a series of corruption scandals, the activities of the BES require a thorough check. In their opinion, control should be exercised independently of the body itself to exclude the possibility of hiding problems or internal collusion.
"It is necessary to independently monitor the activities of this body so that there are no internal collusions," one respondent suggested.
Such sentiments echo the discussion that has been actively ongoing recently among experts and business representatives regarding the need for a comprehensive audit of the BES's activities, in particular, checking the legality of initiated criminal cases. After all, this law enforcement agency has been repeatedly accused of pressuring businesses, and the ratio of the number of registered criminal proceedings to cases sent to court only confirms previous suspicions.
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Another demand voiced by the surveyed Ukrainians was the personnel reset of the body. People believe that to restore trust in the BES, it is necessary to attract professional and honest employees.
"We need to hire professionals, those who are honest, fair. Those who will truly work and hold Ukraine up so that people can live and enjoy life," one of the respondents is convinced.
At the same time, respondents note that the cleansing of the BES can happen when its head has the desire for it. "The willpower of the head is enough to cleanse the entire body," one of the survey participants believes.
The survey shows that Ukrainians are not ready to tolerate corruption in a body that was created to fight economic crimes.