The Security Service of Ukraine (SSU) and the National Anti-Corruption Bureau of Ukraine, with help from the Minister of Energy, have uncovered a major corruption scheme within the Ministry of Energy.
As a result, Deputy Energy Minister Oleksandr Kheil was arrested in Kyiv for allegedly accepting a $500,000 bribe.
According to investigation materials, Kheil promised to help state enterprises in the Lviv-Volyn coal basin move valuable mining equipment from frontline areas in Donetsk Oblast to safer locations in western Ukraine.
This equipment belongs to a state coal company in Pokrovsk, an area heavily affected by the ongoing conflict.
In the spring of this year, industry representatives approached Kheil to request permission to evacuate the equipment.
Instead of doing his job to protect the equipment, Kheil allegedly demanded a bribe.
Kheil allegedly involved three others in this illegal activity: a private energy trader, the head of an energy company from Mykolaiv Oblast, and the manager of a mining company from Donetsk Oblast. The equipment transfer was set to begin once Kheil received part of the bribe.
The bribe was to be paid in five installments of $100,000 each. The SSU carefully tracked each payment, and Kheil and his accomplices were arrested after receiving the third installment.
All four suspects have been officially notified of the charges against them, which involve accepting a bribe. Authorities are now deciding what pre-trial measures will be taken.
