The State Bureau of Investigation suspects the former head of a Kharkiv bank of embezzlement of assets

The State Bureau of Investigation has revealed that one of the key individuals involved in a major scam involving the assets of a Kharkiv bank that was in liquidation was the former acting chairman of the board.

According to investigators, this official was a co-organizer of the illegal transfer of ownership of eight bank properties. To implement this scheme, she involved a legal entity that was associated with the previous owner of the financial institution. Another bank employee, subordinate to the suspect, acted on behalf of this structure.

Back in March 2023, the State Bureau of Investigation documented the withdrawal of bank assets worth about UAH 360 million. A Ukrainian company affiliated with the owner of the bank, along with two foreign organizations currently subject to sanctions by the National Security and Defense Council of Ukraine, participated in this process.

The investigation showed that these companies are connected with the Russian bookmaking business and other structures whose activities pose a threat to the national security of Ukraine. As a result of these actions, the real owners of the real estate became companies with foreign registration, whose actual beneficiaries are citizens of the aggressor state.

The former top manager and her subordinate were suspected under Part 5 of Article 191 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine (embezzlement of property on a vast scale). The maximum penalty provided for by this article can reach 12 years of imprisonment.

This is not the first case. In December 2024, suspicions were raised against six individuals who assisted companies connected with the Russian bookmaking business in the illegal withdrawal of bank assets. Among them are the director of one of the branches of the bankrupt institution, a private notary, three representatives of controlled companies, and the person who “executed the purchase” of real estate. They are charged with several crimes, including embezzlement and complicity in embezzlement, forgery and use of documents, as well as legalization of proceeds from crime (Articles 191, 358, 209 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine).