Position: former acting director of the Department of Public Procurement and Supply of Material Resources of the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine.
Sphere of corrupt activity: military.
Region of corruption activity: all of Ukraine.
Qualification: Part 2 of Article 367 (official negligence), Part 4 of Article 358 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine (use of knowingly forged documents), Part 2 of Article 364 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine (abuse of official position).
Status: in pretrial detention center.
Case story: On November 12, 2024, a former official of the Ministry of Defense was charged with illegally "writing off" almost 94 million hryvnias in penalties related to unfulfilled contracts for the supply of military ammunition to Ihor Hrynkevich. According to media reports, this was the former acting director of the Department of Resource Support of the defense department, Maksym Grytsenko.
Earlier that day, the State Bureau of Investigation (SBI) reported that the official had unreasonably reduced penalties for overdue contracts, which caused significant losses to the state budget. The SBI did not name the businessman, but all the facts pointed to Ihor Hrynkevich.
The corruption scheme began back in 2023, when companies controlled by Ihor Hrynkevich signed a series of contracts with the Ministry of Defense for the supply of military uniforms worth over 1.5 billion hryvnias. A total of 23 contracts were signed. However, at the time of signing the agreements, it became known that the companies did not have their own production facilities and had not concluded any contracts with other enterprises for the implementation of supplies.
Due to violations of contract terms, companies associated with Hrynkevich were unable to deliver uniforms on time. This led to the imposition of penalties that were to amount to almost 98 million hryvnias.
Instead of paying the fines, the Lviv businessman turned to the acting director of the relevant department of the Ministry of Defense. They agreed to conclude additional agreements that extended the delivery terms, in particular under contracts that had already been fulfilled. This decision was made contrary to the terms of the contracts and without any justified reasons.
As a result, the fines were reduced from 98 million hryvnias to 4.5 million hryvnias, or 93.5 million hryvnias. This effectively meant the illegal “write-off” of a huge amount that could have been used for Ukraine’s defense needs.
The State Bureau of Investigation informed the Defense Ministry official of suspicion of abuse of power or official position (Part 2 of Article 364 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine). This article provides for a penalty of imprisonment for a term of up to six years. On November 15, the court arrested him with the right to bail. The former official could be released on bail of 50 million hryvnias.
In early July 2025, the former acting director of the Department of State Procurement and Supply of Material Resources of the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine, Maksym Hrytsenko, was informed of a new suspicion - in causing losses to the state of more than 2 billion UAH. Hrytsenko is currently in pre-trial detention.
Now, a former Ministry of Defense official has been reported on suspicion of official negligence and the use of forged documents.
According to the investigation, during 2023, the suspect concluded 76 contracts with a number of business entities for the supply of fuel and lubricants for special-purpose equipment for state needs for a total amount of over UAH 17 billion.
This amount unjustifiably includes more than UAH 2 billion in value-added tax, in violation of legal requirements.
Such actions of the former owner caused significant losses to the state.
During the pre-trial investigation, business entities reimbursed more than UAH 1.8 billion.
Persons potentially involved in corruption schemes: businessman, head of the Hope UA Foundation, until 2024 - one of the largest contractors of the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine, Ihor Hrynkevich.
Assets: In his 2024 declaration, Maksym Hrytsenko indicated that he owns an apartment in Kyiv. At the same time, his wife Yulia declared three land plots and a residential building in the Kyiv region.
Maksym Hrytsenko also declared a Mazda CX-5 (worth UAH 684,000), and his wife declared a VOLVO XC-60 (worth UAH 760,000).
Hrytsenko's income for this year was UAH 795,849. He declared $1,000 in cash.
Persons who should have reacted: in the case of Hrytsenko, law enforcement officers reacted in a timely manner.
Scandals: Before the corruption scheme, he was not seen as a figure in other scandals.
Sources:
https://www.pravda.com.ua/news/2025/07/4/7520182
https://public.nazk.gov.ua/documents/9ee5892c-d3b5-4a8d-95a1-56d1b3319286