Investigation probes 14 million UAH tax evasion in Odesa construction companies

Investigation into Odesa construction structures

Investigators established that a group of companies with links to developer Gerdas Dubrikas evaded tax payments. The suspects' actions were qualified under Part 2 of Article 205-1 and Part 3 of Article 212 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine.

Results of the Khanber LLC audit

The basis for the criminal proceedings was the act of a documentary audit of Khanber LLC (Unified State Register of Legal Entities code 33311711), conducted for the period from 1 January 2020 to 31 July 2023. During the inspection, the following violations were recorded:

• overstatement of the negative value of the profit tax base by 5.815 million UAH (specifically for 2020–2022);
• understatement of the value-added tax payable to the budget by 8.133 million UAH.

According to the investigation, these amounts arose as a result of financial and commercial operations with counterparties who, as established, did not perform actual construction work. Among these companies are Construction Industries Plus LLC (Budivelnii Industrii Plus LLC), PBG Etalon Bud LLC, Altocork LLC, BK Akkerman LLC, Spetsbudmontazh-777 LLC, and Odesa Construction Alliance LLC.

Scheme involving fictitious subcontractors

The investigation's version suggests that through a chain of these companies, tax invoices were issued for work performed for Khanber LLC and Khanber Trade LLC, totalling 41.23 million UAH, of which VAT amounted to 6.87 million UAH.

Some of the "subcontractor" companies had signs of fictitiousness: they used mass registration addresses and had no premises at their registered locations. Other signs of fictitiousness included a director who had died before the last report was filed, and a nominal founder who admitted to registering the company for a fee and not participating in its activities.

Link to the developer and beneficiary

Khanber LLC and Khanber Trade LLC are interconnected and linked to projects under the Graf Development brand. The developer's objects include the Derby residential complex (Derby Style House) on Fontanska Road, the Manhattan residential complex, Primorski Sady in Kryzhanivka, and other club houses.

The ultimate beneficiary of these structures is identified as a citizen of Lithuania. Open sources have repeatedly reported on the suspension of construction of certain objects by this developer and claims by investors.

The founder of Khanber Trade LLC is the Public Joint-Stock Company "Closed Non-Diversified Venture Corporate Investment Fund Khanner-East". Until February 2017, the director of Khanner-East was Gerdas Dubritskas, who had headed Khanber Trade until March 2010.

He was also the director of the company Future Construction Technologies, among whose founders is Bereh-Group LLC, whose founders include the current Deputy Chairman of the Odesa Regional Council, Oleg Radykovsky.

Accusation and preventive measure

Currently, the director and beneficiary of Budivelnii Industrii Plus LLC, Serhiy Davydovych Dobrev, has received an accusation under Part 3 of Article 212 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine. The man mobilised in advance into the Armed Forces of Ukraine at the age of 53. The court decided to apply a preventive measure in the form of a personal obligation to the suspect.