Received over 250 million UAH: SBU uncovered a gas embezzlement scheme in Cherkasy region

A scheme of embezzlement of state gas worth 251 million hryvnias has been uncovered in the Cherkasy region. This was reported by "Glavkom" referring to the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU).

"The Security Service and investigators from the National Police uncovered a large-scale scheme of embezzlement of fuel from Ukraine's gas transportation system (GTS). According to the materials of the case, from February to June 2023, the defendants stole state gas worth 251 million 174 thousand UAH," the statement said.

According to the SBU, the scheme was organized by a former leader of a local private gas supply company, who previously served as the head of the company's board. At the beginning of the full-scale war, his company bought gas from the state supplier to cover its own production losses. At the beginning of 2023, the state-owned enterprise ceased cooperation with them due to debts for raw materials.

"Instead of paying debts to the state supplier and signing a new agreement with him, the businessmen illegally extracted gas from the state 'pipe' of the GTS. To justify their crime, they used 'exceptional circumstances' and continued to extract natural gas to meet the company's needs. Meanwhile, the profits gained were shared among themselves," the statement added.

The company, led by the former leader of the local private company, illegally 'sucked out' over 10.5 million cubic meters of natural gas from the state GTS. During searches at his residence, documentation, phones, and computer equipment with evidence were seized. The perpetrator faces up to six years in prison.

It is worth noting that earlier the SBU uncovered 52 Russian agents in the ranks of the Armed Forces of Ukraine (AFU). In just 2025, military counterintelligence eliminated three enemy intelligence networks.