Cooperation of Ukrainian and foreign police: members of a criminal organization who stole more than $30 million worth of property from Ukrainian bank vaults were detained in the USA
The criminal organization included at least 25 people. Only in 2015-2016, 51 people fell victim to attackers in Kyiv — the suspects stole property worth a total of almost 170 million hryvnias from their bank safes. The organizers are citizens of Ukraine, who at the same time have US citizenship, where they legalized the illegally received funds. Now they face 20 years in prison. For three years, Ukrainian police officers have worked closely with law enforcement agencies of several countries, including the United States, Latvia, Moldova, Macedonia, Georgia, Azerbaijan and Uzbekistan to detect and detain the perpetrators.
Investigators of the Main Investigation Department of the National Police of Ukraine, employees of the Departments of Internal Security and International Police Cooperation of the National Police of the National Police worked on documenting the activities of the criminal organization in close cooperation with foreign colleagues from several countries. Procedural leadership was carried out by prosecutors of the Office of the Prosecutor General.
During the investigation, the employees of the Civil Service of Ukraine and the Security Service of the National Police for conducting investigative and operational activities under an international legal mandate traveled to the headquarters of Europol in the city. The Hague, the Kingdom of the Netherlands, as well as to the Republic of Latvia, the Republic of Uzbekistan and the Republic of Azerbaijan.
During the pre-trial investigation, the police established that approximately in 2012-2015, two Ukrainian citizens, who at the same time are US citizens, but did not renounce Ukrainian citizenship, decided to systematically secretly steal other people's property from individual (bank, deposit) safes, penetrating into bank vaults.
Aware that the commission of planned crimes is possible only with the combined efforts of a group of individuals, the perpetrators created a stable hierarchical criminal association — a criminal organization with a detailed distribution of the roles of each participant, coordination of their actions, ensuring financing of criminal activities and the procedure for distributing funds obtained as a result of the commission of crimes. The participants of the organization adhered to clear rules of criminal association, conspiracy measures and cover-up activities.
It was established that in the period from June 2015 to March 2018, the organizers selected and inclined to join this criminal organization at least 25 people, including another citizen of Ukraine, who is also a citizen of the United States.
In 2015-2016, the participants of this criminal organization prepared and committed secret theft of property of 51 individuals from individual bank safes of 10 banking institutions in the city. Kyiv has a total amount of 169.181 million hryvnias, which is 34.869 million US dollars. In addition, according to the Ukrainian police, the attackers committed crimes on the territory of other countries for about the same amount.
The attackers stole cash in national and foreign currency, gold products, including jewelry, coins and gold bars, etc.
Throughout the entire period of activity, the participants of the criminal organization, in order to commit particularly serious crimes aimed at stealing funds and valuables in the vaults of banking institutions, committed other crimes necessary to achieve this goal. In particular, we are talking about forging official documents, first of all - passports of citizens of Ukraine and documents on renting bank safes in banking institutions, using knowingly forged documents.
In addition, the participants of this criminal organization from the beginning of 2015 to October 2018 committed similar crimes in the territory of Moldova, Belarus, Macedonia and Latvia.
Also, the attackers made preparations for the secret theft of particularly large amounts of property from the storerooms of banking institutions on the territory of Georgia, the Republic of Uzbekistan and the Republic of Azerbaijan. However, the participants of the criminal organization were not able to carry out the kidnapping due to the fact that the law enforcement officers of these countries were warned about the preparation of such crimes by Ukrainian police officers.
During the pre-trial investigation on the territory of Ukraine, the investigators of the National Police sent indictments against six people to the court. Another four individuals are being asked to provide international legal assistance, which are sent for execution to the international affairs division of the Criminal Justice Department of the US Department of Justice. In particular, inquiries are carried out against members of a criminal organization who, after committing crimes on the territory of Ukraine, in order to avoid criminal responsibility, left for the United States. These are three citizens of Ukraine who are also US citizens - two organizers and one performer, as well as another US citizen. All of them left the territory of Ukraine in 2015 and 2018.
Also since 2019, the investigators of the Civil Service of Ukraine in absentia reported to these persons on suspicion of crimes committed on the territory of Ukraine, the Republic of Uzbekistan and the Republic of Azerbaijan. Ukrainian police also collected materials for their prosecution for a crime committed on the territory of the Republic of Latvia.
In July 2020, they were declared on the international wanted list, a preventive measure in the form of detention was chosen. Interpol also issued “red cards” in relation to them.
In addition, during the pre-trial investigation, five more people were arrested and convicted for committing the above crimes in the territory of Latvia, Uzbekistan and Azerbaijan. Four of them were detained on the basis of information provided by Ukrainian police.
In 2018, 2020 and 2021 on the territory of Ukraine, law enforcement officers conducted searches at the place of residence of participants of a criminal organization, as a result of which material evidence was seized.
At the same time, the police established that the participants of this criminal organization, in particular three persons with dual citizenship of Ukraine and the United States, legalized the stolen property - acquired movable and immovable property on the territory of Ukraine and the United States, including those of their relatives.
In 2020, the Pechersk district court of the city. Kyiv has seized the property of two organizers located on the territory of Ukraine.
On April 20, as a result of international cooperation that lasted more than three years, in particular against a criminal organization for thefts from bank deposit boxes in Eastern Europe and Asia, the US Department of Justice indicted three individuals for “laundering” criminal proceeds in the United States in the amount of more than 30 million US dollars.
Suspects were arrested, their places of residence were searched, weapons of crimes were seized, as well as property acquired with funds obtained by criminal means. Now they face serving a sentence in the form of imprisonment for 20 years only in the United States.
Cooperation on the part of the investigators of the Main Investigation Department was carried out in criminal proceedings, including on the facts of creation of a criminal organization for the purpose of committing particularly serious crimes, as well as leadership of such an organization, participation in it and participation in crimes; organization of secret theft of someone else's property (theft), combined with penetration placing in a room or other storage, committed on a particularly large scale; organizing the forgery of another official document; organizing the use of a knowingly forged document committed as part of a criminal organization, by prior conspiracy of a group of persons, that is, committing criminal offenses provided for by articles of the Criminal Code of Ukraine: part 1 of article 255; part 4 of article 28, part 5 of article 185; part 4 of article 28, part 5 of article 185; part 4 of article 28, part 1 of article 14, part 5 of article 185; part 5 of article 185; part 4 of article 28; part 1 of article 14, part 5 of article 185; part 5 of article 185; part 4 of article 28; part 1 of article 14, part 5 of article 185; part 5 of article 185; part 4 of article 28; part 1 of article 14, part 5 of article 185; part. 4 of Article 28, Part 3 of Article 358; Part 4 of Article 28, Part 4 of Article 358 and other crimes.
Communications Department of the National Police of Ukraine
(Based on the materials of the Main Investigative Department)
