Ukraine’s Interior Ministry has suspended six senior officials from the logistics department of the National Guard’s Main Directorate amid an ongoing corruption investigation. Searches were conducted at their homes and offices on 9 and 10 May, according to Ukrainian media outlet ZN.UA.
“The ministry has initiated an internal investigation and is providing full cooperation with law enforcement,” the Interior Ministry said.
The National Anti-Corruption Bureau of Ukraine (NABU) conducted searches at the homes of National Guard Commander Brigadier General Oleksandr Pivnenko and five other high-ranking officers, including logistics department directors and the head of the National Guard’s Central Supply Base.
According to ZN.UA sources, the investigation involves multiple criminal charges, including embezzlement, money laundering, and accepting bribes.
“The suspects allegedly received 190 million hryvnias ($4.5 mn) in bribes for favoring specific contractors in procurement deals managed by the National Guard’s Central Supply Base,” law enforcement sources told ZN.UA.
The investigation claims the officials received material benefits including a 2023 Toyota RAV-4 and commercial property over 70 square meters in Kyiv.
A separate investigation focuses on Serhiy Hrytsenko, Oleksandr Kalatynets, and Deputy Commander Oleksandr Bilous for allegedly misappropriating 199 million hryvnias ($4.7 mn) through inflated prices for tracked armored personnel carriers purchased from a private company.
This case follows earlier corruption allegations within Ukraine’s defense sector. In January 2023, officials from the Ministry of Defense were arrested for inflated prices in a 13 billion hryvnia ($313 mn) military catering contract.
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