Valuable land along the banks of the Dnipro River in the "Koncha-Zaspa" nature reserve ended up in the hands of a former People's Deputy from the "Party of Regions" through collusion and manipulation. Local officials were involved in the scheme, and dozens of the parliamentarian's staff members—from security guards to drivers—served as front men.
According to Prosecutor General Ruslan Kravchenko, the case involves 23 plots of forest land. At the time the crime was committed in 2010, their value was estimated at 595 million hryvnias. The area of the appropriated land totals 41.5 hectares.
The publication "Ukrainska Pravda" reveals the name of the organizer. It was MP Andriy Derkach—a suspect in high treason, who is currently in hiding in Russia.
The essence of the scheme
According to prosecutors, the parliamentarian’s influence facilitated the misappropriation of protected lands. The head of one of the departments of the local State Committee for Land Resources and the then-head of the Obukhiv District State Administration aided in the commission of the crime.
At the heart of the crime were classic land manipulations. The plots of the landscape reserve belong to the Kyiv community; however, the accomplices included the protected area within the borders of a neighbouring village council on paper.
Subsequently, the head of the Obukhiv DSA arbitrarily disposed of the newly acquired “community property” by unlawfully transferring the land into private hands through an illegal order. Naturally, the plots did not become the official property of the ex-MP.
Initially, the 23 plots were allocated to 23 front persons for “farming purposes”. The supposed lucky owners of the protected land were drivers, security guards, and other staff of the parliamentarian. However, the land was later legalised as the property of persons affiliated with the ex-MP and the DSA official. This process lasted eight years, during which a whole series of fake resale transactions took place.
“The former head of the Obukhiv DSA has been detained and notified of suspicion under Part 5 of Article 191 and Part 3 of Article 209 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine. The other two participants in the scheme have been notified of similar suspicions in absentia, as they are abroad. Steps are being taken to declare them internationally wanted,” said Ruslan Kravchenko.
The property of the suspects and persons connected to them may be subject to seizure. The relevant petition has already been filed with the court.
Manipulating property rights to protected land is a fairly common way to acquire territories within protected, forest, or water fund areas. EcoPolitic systematically covers such cases in its weekly digest on environmental crimes.
