Senior SBU officials suspected in $600,000 business extortion scheme in Rivne region

Ukrainian Prosecutor General Ruslan Kravchenko announced this on Facebook, Ukrinform reports.

All three suspects have been charged under Part 4 of Article 368 of Ukraine's Criminal Code (accepting unlawful benefits on an especially large scale).

The civilian intermediary has additionally been charged with complicity in obtaining unlawful benefits (Part 5 of Article 27 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine).

According to Kravchenko, the SBU officials organized a mechanism to exert pressure on businesses, demanding illicit payments from companies in exchange for resolving their "problematic issues."

The official from the SBU's main directorate in Kyiv and the Kyiv region used a criminal case as a source of illicit enrichment, the prosecutor general said.

To facilitate the scheme, he engaged a civilian intermediary who communicated with business representatives and coordinated the transfer of cash.

"It has been established that during meetings in the Rivne region, entrepreneurs were quoted a so-called 'fee for operating without interference' amounting to $600,000. In return, they were promised the closure of a criminal case, reclassification of charges, and non-interference in their business activities going forward," Kravchenko said.

He added that the unlawful payments were made in stages.

On March 6 in Kyiv, an initial tranche of $50,000 was handed over as a sign of serious intent. Following this, the businessmen were provided with a "roadmap" for resolving their issues within the criminal proceedings.

On March 16, a second tranche of $250,000 was transferred at a restaurant in the Kyiv region.

Separately, investigators exposed a deputy head of the SBU office in the Rivne region who, through the same intermediary, received more than $22,000 from an entrepreneur in exchange for ensuring uninterrupted amber extraction.

In total, law enforcement documented the receipt of more than $322,000.

"The 'price' of impunity in this case did not work. All three participants have been detained, and the funds have been seized," the prosecutor general said.

The suspects face up to 12 years in prison with confiscation of property.

Authorities are currently working to identify all individuals involved.

On March 16, the SBU's Main Directorate of Internal Security detained the intermediary and the two senior officials who were attempting to establish the illegal scheme in the Rivne region.

Photo credit: Ukraine's prosecutor's office