Former Deputy PM accused in major energy corruption scandal

The National Anti-Corruption Bureau of Ukraine (NABU) and the Specialized Anti-Corruption Prosecutor's Office (SAP) have issued a notice of suspicion of illicit enrichment to former Deputy Prime Minister Oleksii Chernyshov. According to the investigation, Chernyshov was involved in the activities of a criminal organization engaged in money laundering.

The NABU reported this on Tuesday, November 11.

Major anti-corruption operation 

Over the course of 15 months, more than 1,000 hours of audio recordings were collected for the case.

On November 10, as part of a large-scale anti-corruption operation in the energy sector, NABU detectives conducted searches, including at the home of former Energy Minister Herman Halushchenko, the headquarters of Energoatom, and the residence of businessman Timur Mindich. 

According to law enforcement, a cover for a document with Russian inscriptions was among the items seized during the search. The National Anti-Corruption Bureau of Ukraine (NABU) did not specify what the item was, but based on the photo, it appears to be a document or award issued by the Russian Federation's Presidential Security Service. NABU has not yet clarified who owned the office or the origin of the item.

Officials involved into the scheme

The investigation revealed that members of a criminal organization, including current and former officials and businessmen, had created a system to influence strategic state-owned enterprises and enrich themselves through control of profits. The organization's office in central Kyiv, which belonged to the family of former MP and current Russian Federation Senator Andrii Derkach, legalized the money.

On November 11, NABU released a wiretap revealing that the organization's leader was a man nicknamed "Carlson", who coordinated the "laundry" operation to launder illegal funds. It later turned out that this man was businessman Timur Mindich, who was also notified of the suspicion.

Money laundering in Energoatom

The investigation found that members of the scheme systematically demanded "kickbacks" from contractors of the state-owned company Energoatom, ranging from 10% to 15% of contract values. Those who refused to pay were stripped of supplier status or had their payments for completed work blocked. Within the organization, the scheme was internally referred to as "Shlagbaum" ("Barrier").

Detectives documented the transfer of more than USD 1.2 million and nearly EUR 100,000 in cash to a former government official and his trustee. It has since been revealed that the official is Oleksii Chernyshov, who previously served as Ukraine's Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of National Unity.

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