Investigation Concludes in Military Food Procurement Scandal.

This was reported by NABU and SAP.

The National Anti-Corruption Bureau of Ukraine and the Specialized Anti-Corruption Prosecutor's Office have completed an investigation into the misappropriation of state funds during the procurement of food supplies for the Armed Forces of Ukraine amid the ongoing war with Russia. Following a review of the investigation materials, the case will be forwarded to court.

The investigation established that between 2022 and 2023, food supplies were procured in so-called sets according to an approved catalog containing 409 items. The most commonly used items, such as vegetables and meat, accounted for only 10% of the total assortment, while the rest, like spices and berries, were ordered infrequently or not at all.

The price of a set was determined based on all items in the catalog, allowing suppliers to manipulate prices: inflating them for popular products while deflating them for less demanded items.

As a result, violations were not immediately evident, although products like potatoes were sold at exorbitant prices. Consequently, two supplier companies gained illegal profits exceeding 733 million UAH.

Part of these funds was later funneled out as dividends and financial assistance to affiliated firms. The owner of the companies could have used this money to purchase real estate abroad. The circumstances surrounding these acquisitions are currently being clarified.

A Ministry of Defense official was complicit in the crime, as they failed to notice pricing anomalies when signing contracts.

Following the initiation of the pre-trial investigation in January 2023 and subsequent media coverage, including reports of egg purchases at 17 UAH each, the co-conspirators reduced prices on 11 of the most sought-after products, saving 788 million UAH from being embezzled.

Additionally, after the recommendations from NABU and SAP, the Ministry of Defense revised its procurement procedures.

Among the suspects are:

• the former head of the Ministry of Defense Department;
• the owner of the affiliated supplier companies;
• two managers of supplier companies;
• individual persons.

Legal qualifications include: part 5 of article 191 (embezzlement), part 2 of article 15 part 5 of article 191 (attempted embezzlement), part 3 of article 209 (money laundering) of the Criminal Code of Ukraine.

Materials regarding other contracts concluded during this period have been separated into a separate proceeding, which is ongoing. NABU and SAP are also taking measures to identify other individuals involved in criminal activities, including officials from the Ministry of Defense.

Disclaimer: According to part one of Article 62 of the Constitution of Ukraine, a person is presumed innocent until proven guilty in a lawful manner and established by a court verdict.