"Protection racket" for call centres and money laundering: criminal organisation headed by official from Office of the Prosecutor General has been exposed – NABU. PHOTOS
The National Anti-Corruption Bureau of Ukraine (NABU) and the Specialised Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office (SAPO) have uncovered a criminal organisation whose members systematically obtained unlawful gains from fraudulent call centres and laundered millions. The mastermind behind the scheme turned out to be one of the heads of a department within the Office of the Prosecutor General.
This was reported by Censor.NET, citing the NABU press centre.
What has been established so far?
According to the investigation, the OGP official set up and led a criminal organisation in mid-2025. He involved both current employees of the prosecution service and unofficial associates close to him in the illegal activities.
Members of the criminal organisation established a system for systematically receiving bribes in exchange for turning a blind eye to the illegal activities of so-called call centres. These shadowy organisations carried out large-scale fraudulent activities, which affected both Ukrainian citizens and foreign nationals.
Schemes for money laundering
The suspects laundered the funds obtained through criminal means via a series of schemes.
- Over 20 million hryvnias were spent on the purchase of property, jewellery and valuable movable assets.
- Assets worth over 12 million hryvnias (minimum market value) were legalised by the organisation’s leader through re-registration in the names of third parties to conceal the true ownership. In particular, this concerns property in a popular apartment complex near the Carpathians.
- Members of the group deposited over 10 million hryvnias into the bank accounts of their close associates under the guise of legitimate income, allegedly derived from business activities.
How many members have been exposed so far?
Five members of the criminal organisation have so far been exposed.
Preliminary legal classification: Article 255 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine (establishment of, leadership of, or participation in a criminal group or criminal organisation); Article 209 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine (legalisation (laundering) of property obtained by criminal means).
Investigations are ongoing. Other possible members of the criminal organisation are being identified.
What led up to this?
- It should be recalled that earlier, ‘ Ukrainska Pravda’, citing its own sources, reported that NABU and the SAP were allegedly conducting searches at the offices of Prosecutor General Ruslan Kravchenko, his deputy Maria Vdovichenko, and the head of the Odesa RMA, Oleg Kipper.
- On 4 September, NABU and the SAPO announced suspected "protection rackets" within the Office of the Prosecutor General (OPG) involving a network of so-called call centres that defraud people of money.
- According to media reports, NABU and the SAPO have detained Serhiy Kropiva, deputy head of the OGP’s Department of International Legal Cooperation.
- Prior to his current post at the OGP, Kropiva served as Deputy Head of the Odesa Regional State Administration, working alongside Oleh Kipper.
- Against this backdrop, NABU has announced a new operation called ‘Carthage’.
- The Office of the Prosecutor General has stated that it will suspend the employee who is under investigation for possible involvement in ‘providing protection for a network’ of fraudulent call centres and the legalisation of assets.
