03.02.2025 Arbitrariness of judges

Servants of the People and OPFL as a corruption shield for budget embezzlement, gambling business and misappropriation of key assets. Digest of treason from the Pechersk District Court of Kyiv

Ukraine’s justice system seems to be rotting from within. Judges no longer stand for justice and truth – their main task is to hide the crimes of those in power, oligarchs and businesses that pay much more than the truth is worth. One example is the Pecherskyi District Court of Kyiv, whose members have long since ceased to deserve the honorable title of judge.

Although this court is one of the main courts not only at the local but also at the national level, its reputation shows complete distrust on the part of citizens and the venality of judges. Here are 3 cases that clearly demonstrate the inefficiency of the Pechersk District Court and the judges’ connections to oligarchs, law enforcement, and officials.

Matiukha’s Favbet gambling business: pseudo-charity and withdrawal of millions to Russia

Since the legalization of the gambling market in Ukraine in 2020, Favbet online casino has been accepting sports betting and operating other gambling services without a license. Only on December 28, 2022, the company finally received a permit for its main activity – betting.

According to official data, in 2021 and 2022, the company showed losses of more than UAH 70 million, and in 2023, after obtaining a license, Favbet suddenly announced revenue of UAH 9.8 billion and net profit of UAH 1.7 billion. But how can you suffer such losses in two years and then suddenly become a billionaire? One big question arises: is the company hiding its real profits?

At the same time, Favbet continues to show losses on all fronts. For example, Favorit Casino Company, a casino operator in Kyiv, showed a loss of UAH 96 million in 2023, and Favbet Game Slots, which manages slot machines, recorded a loss of UAH 27.5 million in 2023. However, these figures raise doubts. After all, with such a share in the gambling market and a huge slot machine business, the company can earn much higher profits than it shows on paper.

And while the company itself is showing losses, its charity foundation, Favbet Foundation, managed to raise UAH 193 million to support the Armed Forces of Ukraine and those affected by the war. This makes it obvious that Favbet has unreported income, and charitable activities are just a PR facade to cover up the real picture of the shadow business. Especially given that the owner of Favbet is Andriy Matyukha, a person whose name has been linked to terrorist financing and allegedly belonging to Russia on the basis of citizenship.

The lack of control by the state and law enforcement agencies poses a real threat to the economy and the tax system. By manipulating financial statements and tax liabilities, Favbet is actually depriving the state of significant funds that could be used for defense, healthcare, and education. And all this despite the fact that the company holds a leading position in the gambling market.

We have been sending materials to law enforcement agencies and investigating judges for a long time, but there has been no result. For example, the ruling of the investigating judge of the Pechersk District Court of Kyiv, Iryna Hryhorenko, in case 757/35762/24-k, refused to oblige the Prosecutor General’s Office to launch a pre-trial investigation. This indicates the judge’s unwillingness to pay attention to the systemic robbery of the budget by Matyukha’s online casino.

Kyiv’s budget is in the corrupt clutches of Khomutynnik’s OPFL 

The construction of the Vynohradar subway has become a real pain for Kyiv, where billions of budget have already been invested, but the work has not progressed even a meter. In 2018, Kyivmetrobud JSC won a tender for the construction of new metro stations worth UAH 5.9 billion. However, even then it became obvious that the project would be shadowed by internal corporate conflicts and massive financial mismanagement.

According to the original plans, the construction was to be completed by December 2021, but even then, serious problems arose: disputes among shareholders, corporate conflicts, and internal disagreements within the company’s management. And although the work was supposed to be carried out at a high speed, the main money simply disappeared.

One of the key beneficiaries of Kyivmetrobud was Dmytro Davtyan. The man lobbied for his interests during the tender process, and later the company’s shares fell into the hands of pro-Russian politician Vitaliy Khomutynnik.

As of 2024, Kyivmetrobud has received about UAH 4 billion in public funds, while the work has been completed by only 10-12%. In December 2022, the company received an advance payment of 50% of the contract amount, although by law it can only be 30%. And this is despite the fact that only part of the protective structure and the initial stage of tunneling have actually been completed.

Other companies controlled by Khomutynnik are also involved in the Kyivmetrobud scheme: POSITIVE-V LLC, TRK TECH LLC, and Kyivmetrotonelstroy LLC. The money received at the tenders is transferred between these companies through fictitious agreements and then used to buy luxury cars, such as a Mercedes-Maybach S 580 for almost UAH 10 million, although the companies do not even have the necessary number of employees or real capacity to carry out such projects.

Behind all this is Khomutynnik personally, who, in addition to Ukrainian subsoil, decided to make money on the budgetary processes of the capital.

Judge V. Yermichova of the Pechersk District Court of Kyiv reacted to the above facts unequivocally – she refused to oblige the Kyiv SBI TI to enter information into the URPTI (757/49630/24- k). It seems that judges do not care about the budgetary processes in Kyiv, is it for their own benefit?

Maksym Krippa: the OPFL on foot, buying up the country’s main assets

It all started back in 2020, when the Dnipro State Hotel, located in the center of Kyiv, was sold at auction for UAH 1.1 billion. Thus, the area of commercial real estate in the center of Kyiv was valued at a square meter in Troyeschyna. At the same time, the buyer company, Smartland, was registered only a few days before the auction and had no significant financial achievements.

The official founder of the latter was Maksym Tereshchuk. Although Maksym Krippa is not listed as a beneficiary, his connection to the purchase of the hotel, as well as a number of other assets, is beyond doubt.

For example, among Krippa’s recent purchases is the UAH 2.5 billion Ukraina Hotel in the center of Kyiv, which was obtained through the Ola Fine-controlled company.

Krippa is not just a businessman, he is a person with a very controversial biography. He is associated with the Vulcan online casino chain, which successfully operates in Russia, as well as with the gambling business.

Research shows that a significant part of his finances go through offshore companies associated with former Party of Regions member Lovochkin and banks of the aggressor country Russia, such as VEB.RF.

Krippa is also linked to Russian oligarch Konstantin Malofeev, known for his activities in the gambling and information technology sectors in Russia. It was thanks to him that Krippa was able to circumvent the ban on casino advertising and actively promote his business in Ukraine.

The judges again turned a blind eye to these facts – by the decision of the investigating judge of the Pechersk District Court of Kyiv, Khaynatsky Y.S. (case No. 757/45990/24-k), the Kyiv Regional Prosecutor’s Office refused to initiate an investigation into the case.

Did you witness a crime?

Let us know about it. We will help protect the violated rights!

Share the post:

Last news

ALL NEWS ALL ARTICLES