Position: former head of the Production Support Center branch of Ukrzaliznytsia JSC.
Sphere of corrupt activity: procurement.
Region of corruption activity: all of Ukraine.
Qualification: actions are qualified under Part 5 of Article 191 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine.
Status: at large.
Case story: NABU and SAPO are investigating case No. 520200000000000138. The defendants in this case are Belashov and the former head of the Production Support Center branch of JSC Ukrzaliznytsia Vitaliy Tsvihun. The case concerns the purchase of gas for the needs of Ukrzaliznytsia at inflated prices, which allegedly caused the state-owned company losses of over UAH 200 million.
The investigation established that from December 2016 to January 2020, officials of the Production Support Center branch of UZ, in collusion with Belashov's entourage, blocked open tenders (the tenders were canceled 6 times) in order to award contracts directly to the necessary firms. On June 11, 2023, the VAKS arrested Belashov with the alternative of a bail of UAH 30 million, but he was released from custody after paying the bail.
The case under Part 5 of Article 191 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine (embezzlement of property on an especially large scale) is currently being considered by the Supreme Anti-Corruption Court.
Earlier in this case, the former head of the fuel warehouse accounting department of the petroleum products accounting and warehousing department of the Central Bank of Ukraine branch, Volodymyr Skorodynskyi, entered into a plea agreement. On April 7, 2023, the Supreme Anti-Corruption Court approved the agreement and sentenced him to a suspended sentence of 5 years in prison with a probation period of 2 years. He was also fined UAH 17,000 and ordered to pay UAH 2 million in damages.
The former director of the Central Criminal Court branch, Vitaliy Tsvihun, tried to appeal the decision to approve the agreement, since he could allegedly be identified in the text of the verdict. However, on May 17, 2023, the Appeals Chamber of the Supreme Court of Justice rejected the appeal and left the decision unchanged.
In addition, in May 2021, NABU and SAPO reported suspicions to two former employees of UZ and a representative of the company "Vog Aero Jet". According to "Slovo i dilo", these are the former head of the branch of the Central Oil and Gas Plant of UZ Vitaliy Tsvihun, the former head of the department of accounting for petroleum products and warehousing of the Central Oil and Gas Plant Valeriy Nikiforov, and the former manager of the company "Vog Aero Jet" Anatoly Savych. As the investigation established, in early 2017, UZ officials took concerted actions to obtain an unjustified increase in the price of diesel fuel from one of its suppliers, increasing their profits by a total of almost UAH 103 million.
Moreover, despite the existence of valid previous contracts that allowed UZ to continue to receive fuel at lower prices, railway officials deliberately insisted on making deliveries at the new, 15-20% higher prices.
At the end of October 2024, the panel of judges of the High Anti-Corruption Court (HACC) announced the verdicts against the former head of the Production Support Center of Ukrzaliznytsia and the organizer of the crime - a representative of a commercial structure.
By court verdict, the individuals were found guilty of abuses that caused Ukrzaliznytsia almost UAH 103 million in losses.
As part of the pre-trial investigation, which was carried out by NABU detectives under the procedural guidance of SAPO prosecutors, it was established that in early 2017, Ukrzaliznytsia officials caused one of the suppliers of diesel fuel to receive an unjustified increase in its price, increasing its profit by a total of almost UAH 103 million.
Moreover, despite the existence of valid previous contracts that allowed Ukrzaliznytsia to continue receiving fuel at lower prices, officials deliberately insisted on making deliveries at the new, 15–20% higher prices. The court found the representative of the commercial structure guilty and sentenced him to five years and five months in prison.
The Supreme Court of Ukraine found the former official of Ukrzaliznytsia guilty and sentenced him to three years and one month in prison.
In addition, the Supreme Court of Criminal Procedure satisfied the civil lawsuit of JSC Ukrzaliznytsia and ruled to recover UAH 102.793 million from the defendants as compensation for damages caused as a result of the crime.
As specified by the Anti-Corruption Center (ACC), these are Valery Nikiforov, the former head of the petroleum products accounting department of the Ukrzaliznytsia branch, and Anatoly Savich, a representative of Vog Aero Jet LLC. The latter has been put on the international wanted list.
Another defendant in this case is the former head of the Production Support Center branch of Ukrzaliznytsia, Vitaliy Tsvihun, who is currently mobilized.
Persons potentially involved in corruption schemes: in addition to Tsvihun, one of the schemes also involves a deputy of the Poltava Regional Council, head of the faction of the Poltava Regional Organization of the All-Ukrainian Association "Batkivshchyna" Serhiy Belashov; another scheme involves Valery Nikiforov, former head of the Department of Accounting for Petroleum Products and Warehouse Management of the Central Aviation Administration, and Anatoliy Savych, former manager of the company "Vog Aero Jet".
Assets: Tsvigun filed his last income declaration in 2021. In it, he indicated that he uses an apartment in Kyiv, which probably belongs to his wife; he is registered in a metropolitan hostel, but lives in another apartment in Kyiv with his children.
Tsvihun's income for this year was 3,355,582 UAH.
He declared $25,000 in cash, and his bank accounts contained 7,310 hryvnias and $105.
Persons who should have reacted: law enforcement agencies responded in a timely manner to criminal schemes involving Tsvihun, presenting him with a suspicion.
Scandals: Before the corruption schemes arose, he was not seen as a figure in other scandals.
Sources:
https://public.nazk.gov.ua/documents/f91ff124-4d37-44db-acc6-d20dcc0933f0