Firtash's companies suspected of tax evasion worth UAH 500 mln: PGO

Ukraine's law enforcers carried out warranted searches in the premises of companies controlled by an oligarch Dmytro Firtash, who is now in Austria, in a tax evasion probe.

"An investigation has been ongoing into the facts of tax evasion by a number of enterprises through Ukraine's insurance market," press secretary for the Prosecutor General Larysa Sargan wrote on Facebook.

She noted that during 2015-2017, "members of an organized criminal group, in order to evade tax payments by a number of enterprises controlled by Ukrainian oligarch Dmytro Firtash", namely: PJSC Severodonetske Obyednannia Azot, PJSC Azot, PJSC Rivneazot, SE Khimik, and others that are part of Group DF, "set up a number of fictitious enterprises and controlled insurance companies".

According to the PGO findings, with a view of withdrawing money into а shadow economy, the above-mentioned companies concluded insurance contracts with insurance companies PJSC IC Salamandra-Ukraine, PJSC IC House of Insurance, and others, also members of Group DF. Based on said contracts, insurance companies were paid fictitious insurance premiums. That is, obviously unnecessary insurance cases were registered on insured events that never happened and could never have happened, of which members of the criminal group were reliably aware, according to Sagran.

Further withdrawal of funds was carried out by the same insurance companies under the guise of insuring fictitious credit agreements and purchase and sale contracts for "junk" securities of other fictitious enterprises and "front" individuals.

Read alsoVienna court rejects Spain's extradition request for Ukrainian oligarch Firtash – media"So, insurance companies would insure the risks of non-repayment of loans issued by the financial company to fictitious enterprises and front persons. Such loans were never planned to be repaid, of which members of the criminal group were well aware. After the actual non-repayment of loans, the insurance companies fully recovered damages on fictitious risks of the financial company, with the subsequent withdrawal of cash through banking institutions," the report said.

At the same time, criminal proceeds were directed to enterprises in the real sector of the economy.

The PGO believes the probe deals with a tax evasion scheme worth over UAH 500 million.

"On Monday, March 19, authorized searches were carried out at the premises of enterprises of the real economy sector and securities traders complicit in committing crimes," Sargan said.