Drone smuggling: Kuznyk, Gerasimov and Zvyagintsev “lit up” at customs in Lviv and Bukovina

Whether Andriy Kuznyk, Yuriy Gerasimov, and Serhiy Zvyagintsev are involved in organizing drone smuggling schemes at customs in Bukovina and the Lviv region remains an open question. However, their presence in this situation is beyond doubt.

Despite recent assurances by Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal about the existence of an effective anti-corruption system in Ukraine, smuggling mechanisms and the outflow of funds from the country continue to operate actively at the border.

According to customs sources, four border crossing points in the Lviv and Chernivtsi regions — “Krakovets,” “Mostyska,” “Rava-Ruska,” and “Porubne” — have become a hub for the import of contraband that passes without proper control.

According to experts, smuggled goods are passed off as drones for the Armed Forces of Ukraine. The scheme operates as follows: in Poland and Romania, 20-ton containers filled with expensive goods — such as jackets, shoes, and bags — are distributed among minibusses that cross the border at night, thereby avoiding inspection and paperwork.

As a result, the state budget does not receive any revenues, resulting in a loss of hundreds of millions of hryvnias. A portion of these funds is allocated to bribes for customs officials. There is an assumption that the acting head of the State Customs Service, Serhiy Zvyagintsev, may also be aware of the situation and receive his share of the benefits.

With the beginning of the full-scale invasion, a new scheme appeared — smuggling drones for the Armed Forces of Ukraine. The authorities exempted the supply of drones from customs duties and VAT to facilitate their delivery to the front, but this became an ideal tool for smugglers, who, under the guise of drones, imported goods without paying any taxes.

Declarations made for the import of drones often contain fake documents, where instead of real inspections, the same photo of one drone appears.

This allows huge sums to be withdrawn from the country. Among the companies involved in this pseudo-import, several firms declared significant amounts for the supply of drones, which are mentioned in the documents.

The owners of the firms offering fictitious imports are connected with several other companies that also participate in this scheme. As a result, due to systematic fraud, the state loses the necessary taxes, and money that is critical for the economy is flung abroad.

This situation poses a significant threat to Ukraine’s national security. So far, no measures have been taken by law enforcement agencies to verify the reality of the import of drones and their further fate. We hope that these illegal operations will be stopped and Serhiy Zvyagintsev will be able to get out of the smuggling ring.