By KYIV. Nov 21 (Interfax-Ukraine) – The State Bureau of Investigations (SBI) has handed over to the Armed Forces of Ukraine almost 140,000 cartridges seized during searches in the case against the management of a chain of military stores in Kyiv, the SBI has reported.
"The State Bureau of Investigations (SBI) has handed over almost 140,000 rounds of ammunition to the Armed Forces of Ukraine, seized as part of a pretrial investigation regarding the management of a network of military stores in the capital," the Bureau said on Telegram channel on Monday.
According to the Bureau, the ammunition was seized and transferred to the AFU by a court decision.
The SBI reminds that in July 2022, the Bureau exposed the leadership of the network of the capital’s military stores on frauds with humanitarian aid for the Armed Forces of Ukraine.
In April 2022, entrepreneurs applied to one of the military units of the capital with a proposal to bring armored plates and protective helmets for them free of charge. They promised to purchase them at their own expense and hand them over to the military as humanitarian aid. To do this, the merchants asked to provide the company with a certificate for the import of the relevant goods, which allowed avoiding customs formalities and payment of customs duties to the state budget.
"After receiving the appropriate certificate, the criminals brought 1,500 armored plates and 300 protective helmets from Poland to Ukraine. The declared value of the goods at that time was more than UAH 800,000. According to preliminary estimates, the market value is approximately UAH 8 million," the SBI notes.
According to the Bureau, in the future, instead of handing over the goods to the military free of charge, the entrepreneurs offered the leadership of the unit to conclude a purchase and sale agreement with them and buy the helmets and plates at market value. When the military refused, entrepreneurs began to put pressure on them. At the same time, armor plates and helmets were put up for sale through a network of their own stores.
of selling goods (items) of gratuitous assistance, in order to make a profit, made in a significant amount, by prior agreement of a group of persons, during martial law (Part 3 of Article 201-2 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine).
