Position: Deputy Head of the Central Interregional Department of the State Migration Service in Kyiv and Kyiv region.
The sphere of corruption activity: migration.
Region of corruption activity: Kyiv region, as well as the city of Kyiv.
Qualification: the actions of Dmytro Lemesh were qualified under part 3 of Art. 368 KKU
Status: at large.
The plot of the case: on July 4, 2022, the SBU detained Dmytro Lemesh, the deputy head of the Central Interregional Department of the State Migration Service in Kyiv and the Kyiv region, for a bribe of $10,000. The official, together with an accomplice, organized a scheme for the legalization of Russians who fled the Russian Federation to Ukraine for bribes.
According to the SBU and the Prosecutor General's Office, the exposed group engaged in the illegal legalization of foreigners in Ukraine. The clients were citizens of Russia and countries with an increased terrorist threat from the Middle East and Central Asia. According to the SBU, these illegals could be used by the special services of the Russian Federation to carry out subversive activities in Ukraine.
"The official of the migration service, having attracted a friend, looked for migrants and offered them to issue a permit for permanent residence in Ukraine for 10-15 thousand US dollars. The final amount of the "reward" depended on the country of origin, the type of documents and the terms of their execution," - it says notices of the Prosecutor General's Office.
According to law enforcement officers, the participants of the scheme "guaranteed" foreigners the issuance of temporary or permanent residence permits in Ukraine, refugee certificates, and even employment in Kyiv and Lviv in express delivery services. Lviv law enforcement officers were also involved in exposing the accused.
An official of the migration service was arrested red-handed - immediately after receiving a $10,000 bribe from the applicant. The SBU conducted 35 searches at the official's place of work and the suspect's place of residence. As a result, more than 160 packages of documents of foreigners, including citizens of the Russian Federation, which the suspects intended to legalize on the territory of Ukraine, were seized, as well as large sums of cash - more than 320,000 US dollars and 400,000 UAH.
Criminal proceedings were opened for receiving an illegal benefit by an official in a responsible position (Part 3 of Article 368 of the Criminal Code).
On the same day, the investigative judge of the Halytskyi District Court of the city of Lviv, Iryna Volosko, partially satisfied the request of the prosecutors to place the powerful man under arrest with the possibility of release on bail. The man was behind bars for no more than a week. Later, Lemesh paid the bail set by the court in the amount of UAH 2.5 million, so he waited for the completion of the investigation. At the same time, the court refused the prosecutor's office's request to remove Lemesh from his post, so he continued to work at the State Police.
Almost two years after Lemesh's arrest, police investigators did not make much progress, and the prosecutor's office was unable to take the case to court in time. Therefore, on April 5, 2024, the Lviv Regional Prosecutor's Office issued a decision to close it due to the end of the pre-trial investigation period. Two weeks later, the judge of the Halytsky District Court of Lviv, Iryna Volosko, returned to Dmytro Lemesh UAH 2.5 million of the previously paid bail.
Persons potentially involved in the corruption scheme: according to the investigation, Dmytro Lemesh had an accomplice. However, his surname is not mentioned in open sources.
Assets: in the declaration for 2022, Lemesh indicated that he owns a plot of land in the Kharkiv region, an apartment in Kharkiv in joint joint ownership, and also rents an apartment in Kyiv. His wife also owns an apartment in the city of Kharkiv.
Dmytro Lemesh also owns a Romain Jerome wristwatch and postage stamps from the USSR.
In addition, Lemesh owns a TOYOTA CAMRY HYBRID worth UAH 1,071,728.
Lemesh's income for the first year of the full-scale war was UAH 652,088, his wife received UAH 140,752 in income from entrepreneurial activities.
Dmytro Lemesh declared $7,000 in cash, UAH 21,300 in his bank accounts. Instead, his wife indicated that she owns assets in cryptocurrency and has UAH 12,500 in a bank account.
In 2023, the official received UAH 681,091, and his wife Olena received UAH 5,238,946.
Dmytro Lemesh kept $7,000 in cash in bank accounts. At the same time, Olena Lemesh declared in cash 1,000,000 UAH and 20,000 dollars, as well as 71,529 UAH, 4,793 dollars and 3,349 euros.
Persons who should have responded to corruption schemes: law enforcement agencies responded in a timely manner. However, Lemesh is still at large due to the negligence of court officials.
Scandals: before the emergence of the corruption scheme, Dmytro Lemesh was not noticed as a figure in other scandals.
Sources:
A senior official of the migration service was accused of legalizing Russians for bribes