Scandal in the capital’s IT: millionaire programmer Pylypchuk suspected of drug trafficking and extortion

Scandal in the capital’s IT: millionaire programmer Pylypchuk suspected of drug trafficking and extortion

A humble IT specialist or a shadowy drug business tycoon, owner of illegal constructions, and extortionist? While some representatives of the IT industry actively donate and work for Ukraine’s victory, others amass fortunes through "crypto," operate in the shadows, and boast about influential connections that help them resolve legal issues. The Kyiv-based "programmer couple" Pylypchuk-Kosenko has come under the scrutiny of law enforcement and the media: the pair is accused of dubious methods of enrichment. But are these suspicions justified?

Investigators from the State Bureau of Investigations (SBI) documented the criminal activities of the head of a law firm who demanded 400,000 USD from the Kyiv couple.

However, as emphasized by the Committee for the Protection of Lawyers’ Rights of the Kyiv Region Bar Council, the searches at the lawyer’s premises were allegedly conducted without a court order and with violations. No money was found in the suspect’s residence, office, or car.

But the most intriguing question is—from whom and for what purposes were these funds likely provided? According to case materials, the 400,000 USD was allegedly intended for "resolving issues" and influencing officers of the Sviatoshyn District Police Department in Kyiv to close a criminal case and a civil lawsuit in court related to the aforementioned IT couple. In fact, it was the programmer couple, suspected of fraudulently acquiring 20 million UAH, who reported the lawyer to the authorities.

It’s worth noting that, according to the victims, the lawyer allegedly valued his services at 30-50% of the couple’s property value. In other words, the couple effectively admits to being dollar millionaires. One might rejoice at such prosperity among Ukrainian IT specialists if not for one "but": the couple’s official income is far more modest, and part of their wealth may have been obtained illegally or, at the very least, through questionable means.

So, are they programmers or darknet and drug business operators?

According to information obtained by "StopCor" from its sources in law enforcement, the couple in question is Oleksiy Pylypchuk and Maryna Kosenko from Kyiv. Together, the pair were among the co-founders of LLC "PecherskSKY-Plaza"—it was into the charter capital of this company, according to the victims, that two of their apartments in Kyiv were contributed without their knowledge.

Overall, according to real estate registries, Pylypchuk and Kosenko jointly own three apartments in the capital (one of which is in the elite Pechersk district) and two parking spaces, with a total value of approximately 1.5 million USD.

Moreover, as evidenced by the woman’s social media posts, before the war, the couple frequently traveled, staying at some of the world’s most expensive hotels. According to insiders, Maryna allegedly told her friends that her greatest fear was that, due to her husband’s affairs, their home would be searched, and her collection of Louboutin shoes, worth over 50,000 USD, would be confiscated.

At the same time, according to data from open information and analytical platforms, both Oleksiy and Maryna are registered as individual entrepreneurs (FOPs), with an annual turnover of only 200-300 thousand UAH. So, where did the real estate, millions, and Louboutins come from?

The answer is simple—there is another "business."

According to YouControl and Opendatabot, Oleksiy Pylypchuk is currently among the co-founders of three companies: the marketing communications agency "Dino" in Kherson, as well as LLC "PecherskSKY-Plaza" and LLC "Teplopostachannya Invest" in Kyiv.

In addition, he is a former beneficiary of another firm: LLC "Kobzar Plaza," which owns an illegally constructed building in central Kyiv at 53a Zlatoustivska Street. The value of this "asset" is approximately 350,000 USD.

All of this is data from open sources.

However, the "closed" information obtained by "StopCor" from insiders is somewhat more intriguing, though it appears controversial.

According to our sources, the IT specialist allegedly amassed his first capital through bitcoins—he reportedly told acquaintances that he knew illegal ways to obtain cryptocurrency. Later, Pylypchuk invested in various projects, though also quite dubious ones, including illegal construction. However, after several summons to the prosecutor’s office, the businessman stopped registering constructions under his name.

Later, the operator allegedly shifted his focus to drug trafficking and extortion. According to insiders, in these shady dealings, the "programmer" was closely connected to a former employee of the National Bank of Ukraine (NBU) and his former neighbor in the "River Stone" residential complex, Yevhen Piskotin.

According to sources, Piskotin and Pylypchuk had very close friendly relations since around the beginning of 2016. Their friendship was reportedly built on the fact that Yevhen could always obtain the "necessary goods" (narcotics) for the Pylypchuk family.

How did this "connection" allegedly work?

On October 30, 2019, Piskotin, while working as a chief specialist at the National Bank of Ukraine, was detained while receiving a bribe. Oleksiy Pylypchuk was reportedly the first and only person who financed all legal expenses. After this, Piskotin was dismissed from the NBU and ventured into "private business" related to controlling illegal constructions, in which Pylypchuk was involved.

In particular, Piskotin’s mother, Nataliya, was appointed director of Pylypchuk’s LLC "Teplopostachannya Invest."

According to sources in law enforcement, since mid-2020, Yevhen Piskotin began cooperating with Khrystyna Nechunayeva, who rented an apartment in one of the elite residential complexes in Kyiv’s Shevchenkivsky district. Several young women reportedly lived in this apartment simultaneously, presumably for the purpose of providing escort services.

"The scheme worked as follows: Piskotin supplied Nechunayeva with 500 grams to 1 kg of marijuana and an undetermined amount of cocaine, which she distributed among her ’wards.’ When they went on ’calls,’ they took the drugs with them. This increased the ’average bill’ for services and, accordingly, boosted the profits of Nechunayeva, Piskotin, and the ’investor’ Pylypchuk," sources claim.

Investigators aimed to identify the supplier and arrest everyone simultaneously, including the "investor" and a representative of a law enforcement agency who allegedly "covered" the scheme. However, the war unexpectedly intervened in the case… In March 2022, Yevhen Piskotin was killed by Russian occupiers near the village of Andriivka in the Kyiv region.

Meanwhile, Pylypchuk and Co., according to sources, likely shifted to another "business"—extortion.

The scheme described by insiders is quite simple: the "IT specialists" order services or provide investments under reasonable and favorable business conditions, and once trust and friendly relations are established, they begin exerting pressure using their connections in law enforcement, including the SBI and the prosecutor’s office, while threatening physical violence.

Oleksiy Pylypchuk openly boasts among acquaintances about allegedly good relations with the Minister of Digital Transformation, Mykhailo Fedorov, and MP and leader of the "Holos" political party, Kira Rudyk. He reportedly refers to Ms. Rudyk as his wife Maryna Kosenko’s best friend.

According to sources quoting his words, these politicians allegedly have the ability to influence law enforcement agencies to "resolve" issues in the interests of Pylypchuk-Kosenko and pressure people who are supposed to pay the couple under fabricated pretexts.

How much of this corresponds to reality? And how does Oleksiy Pylypchuk himself comment on his involvement in criminal cases and accusations of illegally acquired wealth?

To avoid being unfounded, we also reached out to the other side for arguments. Since Mr. Oleksiy leads a rather private life and does not maintain active social media profiles, the "StopCor" editorial team contacted the businessman via email. We sent Pylypchuk questions regarding the aforementioned facts and circumstances and received the following responses:

1. Regarding the scandalous LLC "PecherskSKY-Plaza." Are Mr. Pylypchuk and his wife Maryna Kostenko still co-founders of the company?

"My wife, Maryna Kosenko, is still listed as a founder of the company. Currently, the issue of liquidating the company ’PecherskSKY-Plaza’ is being resolved in accordance with the methods provided by law. However, there is a decision by the Commercial Court of Kyiv, which is publicly available, establishing that the company was created illegally, using forged passports and documents in general," Mr. Pylypchuk stated.

From the editorial team: According to Opendatabot, based on an extract from the Unified State Register as of November 21, 2023, both Maryna Kosenko and Oleksiy Pylypchuk are still listed as co-founders of the company. The company is not in the process of liquidation. Two enforcement proceedings are open against the company. By a decision of the Commercial Court of Kyiv dated August 9, 2023, in a lawsuit by two individuals to recognize an unlawful act and cancel a registration action, the request to terminate the legal entity through state registration was denied.

2. Regarding the criminal case involving the couple, as mentioned by "Court Reporter."

"I am not aware of the status of the case or its closure. In the mentioned criminal proceeding, the investigator, who is currently an accused, assigned my wife and me the status of witnesses, which by its nature makes it impossible to obtain such information. At the same time, I recommend addressing this question to the pre-trial investigation body that conducted the investigation," the businessman commented.

3. Regarding information about business or friendly connections between Pylypchuk and the late Yevhen Piskotin.

"My ’business’ (in quotes) connections with Piskotin can be commented on as follows. Piskotin was my neighbor and, one might say, an acquaintance. As you already know, Piskotin died in the early days of the war, so I don’t want to speak ill of the deceased. Let others evaluate his actions," Pylypchuk noted.

4. Regarding LLC "Kobzar Plaza," which is involved in a case of illegal construction on Zlatoustivska Street.

"I can comment as follows: it was a very unsuccessful investment. I was offered to invest money in a deliberately unprofitable, problematic, or loss-making object. I bought the building with my own funds, but later everything turned out in such a way that I lost both the money and the building. It was a bitter experience for which I paid with money," the entrepreneur responded.

In addition, Mr. Pylypchuk reported that a criminal group is allegedly operating in the capital, which (according to him) registers shell "LLCs" in the Sviatoshyn district under the "protection" of the district police and engages in the illegal re-registration of real estate objects to these entities. This reportedly involves commissioned articles against victims, threats, and intimidation.

Thus, the "scandal in Kyiv’s IT scene" is gaining new details and nuances, as well as potential new figures. For our part, we will continue to monitor the further development of this intricate case and cover it comprehensively.

stopcor.org