27 members of a criminal organization have been exposed and charged with suspicion. Under the leadership of the owner of the bankrupt bank – a former deputy, they misappropriated 90 million UAH from depositors.
According to the investigation, a member of the Ukrainian Parliament of the IV-VI convocations and a former Minister of the Coal Industry, in 2016 acquired a financial institution with the aim of seizing depositors’ funds (at that time, Ihor Nasalyk held the position of minister). He involved the chairman and members of the bank’s board, the chairman of the supervisory board, private entrepreneurs, appraisers, and state registrars in the scheme.
Under the leadership of the bank owner, they registered large-scale real estate in the state register, which allegedly was located in the central districts of Kyiv and Kharkiv.
These non-existent objects became collateral for loans with a total amount exceeding 90 million UAH. With the illegally obtained depositors’ money, the suspects financed their own business projects related to the construction of factories and thermal power plants, coal mines operations, and purchased luxury cars and real estate.
Meanwhile, bank security management staff annually compiled inspection reports on the presence and liquidity of the non-existent pledged property.
This led to the bank being declared insolvent in 2021, as it failed to make payments to its clients and comply with payment orders. The obligation for deposit liabilities payments was transferred to the Deposit Guarantee Fund for Individuals.
At the prosecutors’ request, to ensure compensation for the damages caused, an arrest was imposed on 12 apartments of the suspects in the capital, 5 private houses in the central part of Kyiv with a total area of over 2000 m², land plots, 12 luxury cars, 12 parking spaces, and corporate rights in the authorized capital of companies affiliated with the figures involved.
The suspects are charged with creating, leading a criminal organization, and participating in it, misappropriation, embezzlement, and seizure of property, official forgery, and money laundering of proceeds obtained by criminal means (Part 1 Article 255, Part 5 Article 191, Part 1 Article 366, Part 3 Article 209 of the Criminal Code).
Previously, seven individuals – four former employees of the banking institution, a private firm manager, an appraiser, and a state registrar were already charged with suspicion of property seizure and official forgery as part of an organized group.