List of companies that stole $50 million published

A criminal network may be operating in Ukraine, having managed to steal approximately 2 billion hryvnia (around $50 million) from taxpayers in Ukraine, the US, the UK, and the EU. The group operates with the support of high-ranking officials and members of parliament.

The scheme involves 19 legal entities, including companies linked to the well-known brewer Serhiy Shapran and his partner, Opposition Platform — For Life (OPZhy) deputy Volodymyr Osypov.

Information regarding the involvement of these companies was published by the "Svobodny" (Free) Telegram channel. 

This list has been submitted to the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU), the National Anti-Corruption Bureau (NABU), the US Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), UK law enforcement agencies, and other EU bodies.

An analysis of these companies' activities revealed that they engage in the import of goods such as clothing, fabrics, auto parts, and footwear, while declaring the "rental" of warehouse spaces and the storage of significant volumes of unsold products. It is important to note that these companies apparently do not use cash registers (registers of settlement operations), which is a violation of the law.

Eight companies also stand out from the list, as they sell imported goods through two major operators — NOTELE LLC and IMPREX LOGISTIC LLC. These firms are allegedly linked to Osypov and his business partners. For instance, NOTELE director Oleksandr Khil is also the director of Imprex Logistic, while the latter's second co-owner is Volodymyr Osypov, an OPZhy member.

Among other figures in this network is Vyacheslav Perchuk, a co-owner of Imprex Logistic, who is alleged to have participated in the dispersal of Euromaidan in 2013 as part of the Berkut special unit.

Furthermore, data indicates that these companies are engaged in the illegal sale of aluminium ingots. One of the major buyers of such ingots is LIVARNYI ZAVOD TSVETNYKH SPLAVOV LLC (Foundry of Non-Ferrous Alloys), which is linked to Anatoliy Shvydchenko, who is implicated in a corruption case, and Vyacheslav Suprunenko, a former Kyiv City Council deputy.

Particular attention was drawn to the connection with Serhiy Shapran, a businessman from Brovary, who, through the Cyprus-based company AluMet LTD, is the ultimate beneficial owner of the Brovary Aluminium Plant. Shapran has already come under the scrutiny of journalists who exposed his involvement in the seizure of assets related to sanctions, as well as in illegal sand trading.

It is highly likely that these 19 companies, which sell goods worth approximately 2 billion hryvnia, are also engaged in under-declaring customs payments and selling goods for cash without reflecting this activity in their reporting, causing significant damage to both the Ukrainian economy and its international partners.