The head of one of the offices of "Forests of Ukraine" was suspected of embezzling 15 million UAH

The head of one of the offices of "Forests of Ukraine" was suspected of embezzling 15 million UAH shutterstock
Katerina Belousova

The official's property was seized

Suspicion was reported in Volyn to the former director of one of the state forestry enterprises, who is also a deputy of the city council, regarding the embezzlement of over 15 million UAH in 2019-2021.

Currently, he holds the position of director of one of the regional forestry offices of the state-owned enterprise "Forests of Ukraine", informs Office of the Prosecutor General.

It is noted that the chief accountant of the enterprise was also informed about the suspicion.

"He [the ex-director] unreasonably transferred funds from the bank account of the forest farm to the benefit of economic entities for the allegedly provided services for the repair of transport, road transport, loading of forest products, etc. The investigation established that in fact they were not provided," the message reads.

As you know, part 5 of Article 191 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine, under which the suspicion was announced, provides for deprivation of liberty for a term of seven to twelve years with deprivation of the right to hold certain positions or engage in certain activities for a period of up to three years and with confiscation of property.

"Currently, the issue of selecting a preventive measure and removing him from office is being resolved. The man's property has been seized," the press service said.

We remind you that in Volyn, Kovel City Council member Pavel Semenyuk was suspected of organizing a criminal scheme regarding the export of illegal wood in the amount of over 44 million UAH.

As EcoPolitics previously reported, in Lviv Oblast, the management of the branch of the state-owned enterprise "Forests of Ukraine" organized an underground data-center for cryptocurrency mining in the office premises of "Rava-Rus Forestry". The losses reached more than 1.5 million hryvnias, and those involved earned at least 4 million UAH.

Related
Visits to forests have been banned in Ukraine due to an extremely high risk of fires
Visits to forests have been banned in Ukraine due to an extremely high risk of fires

Roads leading into the forest are being blocked by barriers, and forest rangers, together with the police and rescue services, are stepping up patrols in the area

Completed, overdue, carried over: what the Ministry of Economy’s environmental performance report for the year looks like
Completed, overdue, carried over: what the Ministry of Economy’s environmental performance report for the year looks like

Which of the department’s plans have been successfully implemented, and how many of the achievements did the merged ministry actually inherit from its predecessor?

Digest of environmental crimes: the fight for nature reserves, millions from mineral resources and pollution
Digest of environmental crimes: the fight for nature reserves, millions from mineral resources and pollution

The former director of one of the branches of ‘Forests of Ukraine’ has been charged with negligence, which led to 226 hectares of state-owned forest becoming ‘Medvedchuk’s holiday home’

8,000 hectares of woodland have been planted in southern Ukraine over the past three years: how the climate is affecting this
8,000 hectares of woodland have been planted in southern Ukraine over the past three years: how the climate is affecting this

To establish forests in southern Ukraine, it is necessary to carefully select tree species and tend to the young plantations for years on end