Ukraine’s state security agency has served businessman Dmytro Firtash and top managers of companies he controls with “notices of suspicion” of embezzlement, the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) said in a statement on Monday (15 May).

The SBU said that, acting with the Economic Security Bureau (BEB), it had uncovered the alleged theft of up to $485 million between 2016 and 2022 as part of a “large-scale scheme” involving Ukraine’s gas transit system.

Firtash, a former supporter of Ukraine’s ousted pro-Russian president Viktor Yanukovich, has made a fortune selling Russian gas to the Kyiv government.

Gazprom reinstates Ukrainian tycoon as gas broker

As concerns mount over Ukraine’s ability to pay its import bill, Gazprom has agreed to supply discounted gas to a Ukrainian tycoon, who has previously acted as an intermediary between it and Ukraine’s Naftogaz, a company source said today (9 October).

“Effectively we are talking about the embezzlement of money from ordinary Ukrainians who paid their utility bills,” the statement said.

A statement issued by Firtash’s company, Group DF, “firmly and categorically” rejected all the allegations as without legal foundation and “part of an ongoing campaign of corrupt pressure directed at its business operations.”

It said the company and its legal advisers “will vigorously defend the interests of its businesses, personnel, and the shareholder in both Ukrainian and international courts.”

The statement said Group DF had suffered losses linked to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and “will continue to support the defence effort against the Russian aggression.”

While fighting Russia’s invasion, Ukraine has also been seeking to reduce the political influence enjoyed by some businessmen since the collapse of the Soviet Union. The European Union has also made tackling corruption a priority for Kyiv as it tries to join the wealthy bloc.

Ukraine imposed sanctions on Firtash last June, accusing him of selling titanium products that Kyiv said ended up being used by Russian military enterprises. Firtash denied the allegations.

Firtash, 58, rose to wealth and influence in Ukraine but has been indicted in the United States on bribery and racketeering charges. He denied wrongdoing and has fought extradition from Vienna.

Austrian extradition could spell trouble for Trump

An Austrian court on Tuesday (22 February) approved the extradition of Ukrainian businessman Dmytro Firtash to the United States in a bribery case, overturning an earlier ruling that had said the US request was politically motivated.

Piles of cash

Ukrainian anti-graft authorities said on Monday they were investigating large-scale corruption in the country’s Supreme Court system and shared a photograph of piles of dollars neatly lined up on a sofa.