Position: ex-head of the Migration Service of Ukraine (2015-2021).
Sphere of corrupt activity: migration service.
Region of corruption activity: the city of Kyiv.
Qualification: Sokolyuk's actions were qualified under Part 5 of Art. 191 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine.
Status: at large.
The plot of the case: in June 2024, the National Anti-Corruption Bureau (NABU) and the Specialized Anti-Corruption Prosecutor's Office (SAP) together with the Department of Internal Security of the National Police informed the ex-head of the State Migration Service of Ukraine, Maksym Sokolyuk, about the suspicion of embezzlement of over 88 million UAH.
In this way, the last link of the vertical of ex-employees of the Ministry of Internal Affairs, involved in the implementation of the scheme, was exposed. The actions of the suspect are classified under Part 5 of Art. 191 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine.
According to the investigation, in 2015, the State Migration Service received a building in the center of Kyiv from the state to house its central office. The businessman, who for a long time was in "friendly" relations with the representatives of the State Migration Service and other officials, organized a scheme to embezzle budget funds using controlled persons in the structure of the migration service.
As established by NABU and SAP, he involved the ex-chairman of the DMS, his deputy, and the head of the economic department of the DMS, so that they would contribute to the conclusion of contracts with companies under his control regarding the execution of project and construction works by distorting the results of auctions and ensuring payment for "works and services ".
For several years, the criminal group seized budget funds by overestimating the cost of completed works, issuing "empty acts" and duplicating works. As a result, the reconstruction of the building of the central office of the DMS was never completed, computer complexes with the appropriate software exist only on "paper", and those responsible for the reconstruction of the company "collapsed".
As a result of the implementation of the budget scheme, losses in the amount of more than UAH 88 million were caused. In September 2023, the suspicion was reported to the former deputy head and head of the economic department of the DMS, as well as to the businessman - the organizer of the scheme.
The materials collected by NABU detectives during the pre-trial investigation helped the Antimonopoly Committee of Ukraine to discover the conspiracy of three companies controlled by the businessman and to fine them almost UAH 3.5 million.
For its part, the Anti-Corruption Center provided details of the case. This case involves former heads of the State Security Service and a businessman from the Russian Federation, who was on friendly terms with service officials for a long time.
On June 20, 2024, the investigating judge of the Higher Criminal Court of Criminal Procedure, at the request of NABU detectives, agreed with the SAPO prosecutor, applied a preventive measure in the form of a 3 million UAH bail to the former head of the State Migration Service of Ukraine.
The court also imposed the following procedural obligations on the suspect: to appear at every request to the detective, prosecutor, and court; not to leave the city of Kyiv and the Kyiv region without the permission of the detective, prosecutor, and court; to notify the detective, prosecutor, and court of a change in his place of residence and place of work; to refrain from communicating with witnesses in the case; to hand over to the relevant state authority his passport/passports for travel abroad, other documents giving the right to leave Ukraine and enter Ukraine; to wear an electronic means of control.
At the end of September 2025, the Specialized Anti-Corruption Prosecutor's Office referred the case to court on suspicion of the former head of the State Migration Service Maksym Sokolyuk, his deputy Serhiy Donsky, the former head of the service department Volodymyr Vakalyuk, and businessman Salgerei Salgereiev in embezzling UAH 88 million.
This was reported by the press service of the SAPO, but it did not mention the names of the suspects. According to media reports, these are the individuals whose investigation was recently completed.
The SAPO prosecutor, based on the materials of the pre-trial investigation of the NABU, sent to the court an indictment charging the former head of the State Migration Service (hereinafter referred to as the SMS of Ukraine), his former deputy, the former head of the Department of Resource and Economic Support and Capital Construction of the SMS of Ukraine, an engineer and entrepreneur - a citizen of the Russian Federation, with embezzling UAH 88 million of budget funds during the reconstruction of a building in the center of Kyiv to house the central office of the SMS of Ukraine.
Also at the end of the same month, the High Anti-Corruption Court scheduled a hearing for October 27 to consider the case against the former head of the State Migration Service, Maksym Sokolyuk, his deputy, Serhiy Donsky, former head of the service department, Volodymyr Vakalyuk, technical supervision engineer Ihor Kravchenko, and businessman Salgerei Salgereiev, in the embezzlement of UAH 88 million.
To schedule a preparatory court hearing in the criminal proceedings on the charges (Sokolyuk, Donsky, Vakalyuk, Kravchenko and Salgereyev) for October 27, 2025 at 12:00 in the premises of the High Anti-Corruption Court
Persons potentially involved in the corruption scheme: former deputy head of the SMS Serhiy Donsky, head of the economic department of the SMS Volodymyr Vakalyuk, as well as businessman and organizer of the scheme Salgerey Salgereyev are also involved in criminal activity.
Assets: in his 2021 declaration, Maksym Sokolyuk indicated that he owns an apartment in Kyiv in joint ownership with his mother, and also has the right to use a garden house and two plots of land owned by his mother.
In addition, Sokolyuk has the right to use cars belonging to his mother and wife, namely - CHEVROLET AVEO and MAZDA CX-5. At the same time, the ex-official himself owns only one car - Toyota Tundra worth 343,680 UAH.
Sokolyuk's income for 2021 was UAH 1,548,314.
Sokolyuk declared 14,000 UAH in cash, and 7,687 UAH and 60,000 USD in his bank accounts. In return, his wife Anastasia indicated 10,000 UAH and 2,800 USD in cash as savings, as well as 106,302 UAH in her bank account.
Persons who should have responded to corruption schemes: law enforcement agencies responded in a timely manner to the criminal activities of Maksym Sokolyuk and his accomplices.
Scandals: in 2021, the head of the State Migration Service, Maksym Sokolyuk, who had previously celebrated his wedding with a bang, was fired.
In 2020, the then head of the State Migration Service divorced his wife and announced that he had met a new love - Anastasia Zinchenko, who became known as the "girl with the dog from Wuhan", who was unable to return from coronavirus-stricken China to Ukraine because she did not want to leave her pet there. Then the official helped her evacuate from the coronavirus-stricken Chinese province. That's how they met. Later, he divorced his previous wife, and his relationship with Nastya became public.
Sources:
https://lb.ua/society/2024/06/18/619421_ekskerivnika_migratsiynoi_sluzhbi.html
https://www.rbc.ua/rus/news/zavolodinnya-88-mln-griven-sud-obrav-zapobizhniy-1718899094.html
https://www.rbc.ua/rus/news/zavolodiv-88-mln-griven-eks-golovi-migratsiynoyi-1718703400.html
https://public.nazk.gov.ua/documents/adac12ac-196b-4bab-af63-d9bde9657d92