The price of negligence is 49 million: NACP exposed hidden income and the house of Cherkasy deputy Viktor Yevpak

The price of negligence is 49 million: NACP exposed hidden income and the house of Cherkasy deputy Viktor Yevpak

49 Million for "Forgetfulness": How Cherkasy City Council Deputy Viktor Yevpak Recalled His Income Only After NACP Inspection.

The National Agency on Corruption Prevention inspected the 2024 declaration of Viktor Yevpak, a deputy of the Cherkasy City Council from the "Holos" party, and found significant discrepancies. These are not minor errors but false information amounting to over 49.2 million UAH. Only after NACP’s remarks did the deputy submit an updated declaration, reflecting additional assets and income totaling more than 49 million UAH.

According to the agency, in the initial declaration, Yevpak failed to report a residential house in Cherkasy, the estimated value of which is nearly 9 million UAH. He also did not declare dividend income from his companies registered in the USA, amounting to approximately 39.4 million UAH. These sums constitute the bulk of the "forgotten" funds.

The deputy explained the omission of data on the property as "carelessness." According to him, it concerns a country house he purchased earlier and later expanded, and the object was not included in the declaration because several buildings with different registration numbers are located on the same plot of land.

Yevpak also did not report foreign income amounting to nearly 39 million UAH, later explaining that he believed only income received in Ukraine needed to be declared. After the inspection, he clarified that these funds are dividends from his IT companies registered in the USA.

It is worth noting separately that Viktor Yevpak is not an ordinary deputy: in 2020, he ran for the position of Cherkasy mayor. However, even for a politician with such ambitions, the requirements of financial transparency seemingly were not a priority—at least until the NACP intervened.

Based on the inspection results, the agency determined that there are signs of an offense in the deputy’s actions. The substantiated conclusion of the NACP has been forwarded to the National Police of Ukraine for further action. Essentially, this is a situation where tens of millions of hryvnias were reported in the declaration not on the official’s own initiative but only after an official inspection and direct inquiries from the anti-corruption body.