Tax officials caught in fraud scheme

A journalistic investigation has revealed large-scale schemes for money laundering and illegal VAT refunds, which, according to the data obtained, involved high-ranking officials of the State Tax Service of Ukraine and their patrons.

According to information from the "Don Quixote" channel, systematic violations of tax legislation were carried out by the "Granova Ukraine" group of companies through export operations involving cash settlements.

 A key role in these frauds was played by the enterprise Velikobagachanskyi Compound Feed Plant LLC, which issued tax invoices (TI) for the company "Granova Ukraine".

An example is a transaction dated 17 May 2024, when the plant issued a tax invoice for the supply of corn with a total value of 9 million hryvnia, of which 1.1 million was VAT. The document was registered only on 18 July — the last day permitted for submission.

Between August 2023 and June 2024, the compound feed plant sold 14,200 tonnes of wheat and corn to "Granova Ukraine" for a total of 83 million hryvnia, including 10 million in VAT. 

However, according to the enterprise's reporting, only 12,400 tonnes of grain worth 74 million hryvnia were declared as purchased, of which 9 million was VAT.

These data indicate that the plant's details were used to launder undeclared grain, allowing "Granova Ukraine" to conduct illegal financial operations. The investigation exposes the scale of the violations, which are based on a collusion between representatives of the authorities and commercial structures.