Position: People's Deputy of the Verkhovna Rada from the "Servant of the People" party, member of the Verkhovna Rada Committee on Budget Issues.
Sphere of corrupt activity: parliamentarism.
Region of corruption activity: the entire territory of Ukraine.
Qualification: actions are qualified under Part 2 of Article 366-2 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine - "Declaration of false information".
Status: at large.
The plot of the case: at the end of December 2024, "Schemes" found out that since 2015, the family of People's Deputy Roman Kaptelov has owned real estate in Moscow, with a third of the apartment registered to his wife and children. Journalists estimated that the value of the share of the apartment owned by Kaptelov's wife and children, which the deputy does not declare, is about six million hryvnias.
During the investigation, journalists found out that the deputy's family left Ukraine a month before Russia's full-scale invasion, and since December 2023, Kaptelov's wife began receiving a salary from the "Association of Cultural Centers of the Southwestern Administrative District" in the capital of the Russian Federation.
According to an extract from the Russian Pension Fund, which was obtained by "Schemes", in December the wife of the People's Deputy received a salary of 52 thousand rubles, which is about 21 thousand hryvnias. But Roman Kaptyolov did not reflect either this work or the income from her online trainings for Russians in his declaration for 2023. In 2024, Kaptyolov's wife earned a total of more than 700 thousand rubles there, which is about 300 thousand hryvnias.
"Schemes" also established that during July-September 2022, as well as in January 2023, the "servant of the people" traveled abroad - during that period, several plenary sessions were held, during which, according to the Verkhovna Rada electronic system, the parliamentarian "did not vote" or was listed as "absent."
The dates of Kaptelov's trips, as journalists found out, coincide with his wife's trips from Russia to Turkey. In a comment to "Schemes", the deputy said that the trips "were made for official purposes and in connection with personal circumstances", but he never provided copies of the relevant business trips at the request of journalists. He also stated that he had declared everything required by law, and he was unaware of the family's Russian property. When asked about possible risks associated with his status and the family's residence in Russia, Kaptelov said that "these circumstances do not affect his activities as a people's deputy."
Subsequently, the National Anti-Corruption Bureau and the Specialized Anti-Corruption Prosecutor's Office began an investigation into the possible provision of false information by Kaptelov.
This criminal proceeding has already been initiated by the Acting Prosecutor General.
According to the law, it is the head of the Prosecutor General's Office or his acting representative who enters information into the Unified Register of Pre-Trial Investigations against People's Deputies of Ukraine.
As reported by law enforcement officers, a case was opened under Part 2 of Article 366-2 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine - "Declaration of false information", the maximum sanction is imprisonment for a term of up to two years, with deprivation of the right to hold certain positions or engage in certain activities for a term of up to three years.
Director of the National Anti-Corruption Bureau Semen Kryvonos added: "It should be borne in mind that investigating such a category of cases and obtaining information specifically from Russian jurisdiction is a rather difficult category to prove. And this is a huge problem, it needs to be talked about, because obtaining evidence regarding the value of real estate in the Russian Federation in the manner provided for by the criminal process is a challenge for pre-trial investigation bodies."
Persons potentially involved in corruption schemes: open sources do not provide information about Kaptelov's potential accomplices.
Assets: In his 2023 declaration, Kaptelov indicated that he owns four land plots, a residential building, and an apartment in Kyiv. In addition, the MP declared a Land Rover Discovery worth UAH 2,156,464.
The income of the People's Deputy for 2023 was UAH 612,463.
He declared 270,000 UAH and 87,000 USD in cash. His bank accounts contain 42,721 UAH, 94 USD, and 5,115 Russian rubles.
Persons who should have reacted: law enforcement agencies responded to Kaptelov's criminal activities in a timely manner. However, the MP is still at large.
Scandals: Already during his term as a deputy, Kaptelov got into several scandals. At the end of February 2020, he was accused of wanting to redraw the boundaries of the AH in Bohdanivka, then still in Pavlohrad district, for the AH elections. Kaptelov himself stated that this was a well-considered decision by the Ministry of Regional Development and people should have joined Ternivka. But local residents were categorically against it and the matter almost came to a fight.
"The most difficult meeting is the Bogdanivska AHC. We discussed the decision of the Ministry of Regional Development to merge the community with the city of Ternivka. And this meeting turned out to be difficult not because, at the behest of the community head, they brought in a full hall of people who saw me, as they say, as the cause and culprit of their troubles. The most difficult thing is to convey the reasons and consequences of not listening to the recommendations of the Ministry. The head of the community is afraid to tell the truth and is afraid of responsibility - that's why he hides behind people's backs," Kaptelov wrote then on social networks.
Although he didn't get along very well with the residents of Ternivka. Once he didn't accept an invitation to come to the city for one of the holidays, which offended the community. Kaptelov himself commented on the situation at the time: "I'm dealing with a "legacy" from the previous deputy - people believe that the deputy should give them money: for treatment, etc. They are used to the fact that the people's deputy works "as a calendar", participating in all the holidays, - he said. - I won't be able to quit my main job to be present at all the holidays. People may be disappointed, I understand that. But I was hired not to give away money, but to help communities earn money."
The current People's Deputy also came to light in Pavlohrad itself. He came to the session to "monitor" the expulsion from the faction of local deputies - Oleksandr Yermakov and Iskander Iskanderov. This was due to the fact that they allegedly violated party discipline.
"You betrayed your voters. They voted for you as a candidate for the regional council, but you exchanged this mandate for the mandate of a city council deputy. We will recall you as soon as the terms specified by law allow. You are being recalled because you left the Servant of the People party, and it was your right to join or leave the party. You could have joined another party. Well, there are times when there is such a shortage," Kaptelov said then.
Sources:
https://www.radiosvoboda.org/a/skhemy-kaptyelov--sluha-narodu-rodyna-moskva/33246063.html
https://www.radiosvoboda.org/a/news-skhemy-nabu-sap-sluha-narodu-kaptyelov/33309578.html
https://vidomo.media/ukr/dossier/kaptelov-roman-volodimirovich