“Taxed” entrepreneurs: SBU detains tax officer with assistance of new head of the State Tax Service Kravchenko
Kyiv • UNN
A chief state tax inspector was detained in Kyiv while receiving a bribe from a construction company. The official demanded $20,000 for “canceling” tax liabilities after an audit.
The Security Service of Ukraine, with the assistance of Ruslan Kravchenko, head of the State Tax Service of Ukraine, has eliminated a criminal "scheme" operating in the fiscal agency, UNN reports with reference to the SBU.
Details
As a result of complex measures in Kyiv, the Chief State Inspector of the Central Interregional Department of the State Tax Service was detained on a bribe of USD 20 thousand.
According to the case, the official demanded this amount from the director of a private construction company from Chernihiv for a "positive" tax audit.
In case of receiving the money, the official promised the entrepreneur to "cancel" his commercial obligations to pay taxes, which he had to pay to the state budget.
SBU officers documented the tax officer's receipt of the illegal benefit and detained him red-handed while he was receiving one of the USD 13 thousand tranches.
Based on the evidence, SBU investigators served the suspect a notice of suspicion under Part 3 Art. 369-2 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine (acceptance of an offer, promise or receipt of an unlawful benefit for oneself or a third party for influencing the decision-making of a person authorized to perform the functions of the state or local self-government, combined with extortion of such benefit).
The sanction of the article provides for a penalty of 8 years in prison with confiscation of property.
The pre-trial investigation is currently underway to establish all the circumstances of the crime and bring all the perpetrators to justice.
The complex measures were carried out under the procedural supervision of the Kyiv City Prosecutor's Office.
We would like to add that, according to part one of Article 62 of the Constitution of Ukraine, a person is presumed innocent of committing a crime and shall not be subjected to criminal punishment until his or her guilt is proved in accordance with the law and established by a court verdict of guilty.
