"Slightly damaged" for next to nothing: officials massively underestimate the value of cars in declarations — investigation

"Slightly damaged" for next to nothing: officials massively underestimate the value of cars in declarations — investigation

Journalists have found numerous cases of undervaluation of the purchase price of vehicles in the declarations of officials, law enforcement officers, mayors, and members of parliament.

This is reported in a journalistic article by NGL.media.

For example, Verkhovna Rada deputy Maksym Sokolov purchased a 2022 Toyota Highlander Hybrid in October 2022 for only 10,000 UAH—approximately 200 times less than its actual value.

Mykhailo Sokolov claimed that he bought the car with "significant damages" but refused to specify what these damages were.

Victoriya Nehoda, head of the land resources and ecology department of the Prystolychna rural territorial community near Kyiv, also informed journalists about a "slightly damaged" car.

In October 2023, she stated that she purchased a 2022 Hyundai Tucson for 100,000 UAH, even though the real market value of such a car is at least ten times higher.

Regarding the right to use a vehicle, the situation is even more complex. While studying the registry of declarations, journalists identified over a thousand declarants who do not indicate the value of the car at all.

As Oleksiy Boyko, a lawyer from the Center for Combating Corruption (CCC), explains, in such cases, a declarant may not indicate the value if it is unknown.

However, if a value is indicated, the NAPC can request supporting documents.

Some officials do disclose the value of vehicles they use in their declarations, even though they do not formally own them.

For example, the mayor of Ternopil, Serhiy Nadal, stated in his latest declaration that he uses an Audi Q7 2024 valued at 750,000 UAH, which belongs to his father-in-law Bohdan Verbovyi.

However, Nadal did not indicate that he actually uses a more expensive sports version, the Audi SQ7, and the value he reported was understated by more than five times. As journalists discovered, Bohdan Verbovyi purchased this car new from a dealership last May, and it was recently sold for 4.7 million UAH.

Former Verkhovna Rada deputy Iryna Kormyshkina indicated in her new declaration that she uses a luxury sedan, the 2022 Mercedes-Maybach S580, owned by her husband Yuriy Kormyshkin.

Kormishkina estimated the value of this car at 350,000 UAH, although its official price starts at 12 million UAH. Moreover, owners of such cars must annually pay a "luxury tax" of 25,000 UAH.

An interesting story also emerged about Oryst Kavetskyi, the head of the Zolochiv District Council. In his declaration, he reported that his wife, Khrystyna Kavetska, uses a 2022 BMW X6 registered to her mother Mariya Karvatska. The BMW X6 is valued at only 100,000 UAH, which is at least 20 times lower than the minimum market price.

According to ACC lawyer Oleksiy Boyko, an understated property value can be considered an indication of asset concealment or a hidden bribe.