“In an interview with politician Borislav Bereza, entrepreneur Serhiy Vaganyan stated about the creation of a system vertical of extortion, which was allegedly built after 2019 by ex-head of the SBU Ivan Bakanov and his confidant Andriy Naumov. The businessman claims that he was forced to give from 30% to 50% of his profit from the export of grain in exchange for the loyalty of law enforcement officers and customs, and the total sums”, — write on: ua.news
In an interview with politician Borislav Bereza, entrepreneur Serhiy Vaganyan stated about the creation of a system vertical of extortion, which was allegedly built after 2019 by ex-head of the SBU Ivan Bakanov and his confidant Andriy Naumov.
The businessman claims that he was forced to give away 30% to 50% of his profits from grain exports in exchange for the loyalty of security forces and customs, and the total sums of monthly bribes reached 10 million dollars. To confirm his words, Vahanyan provided hidden video recordings, which recorded the process of counting cash in the offices of the special services, as well as photos of armored cars filled with wads of money, which he personally transported to Kyiv in his own helicopter.
In one of the shots, a man is standing next to a white sofa and counting money. This is Ivan Bakanov, according to the businessman.
Naumov is also present in the frame, and on his desk are bundles of money, which Vahanyan brought every week as interest for entrepreneurial activity.
Vahanyan also showed a photo of Bakanov’s armored car, in which there is a lot of money. The entrepreneur claims that this is another “part” for the trouble-free work paid by him to the service.
Particular attention was paid to political corruption and manipulation of state security tools in the exposés. Vahanyan said that in 2021 he was persistently offered to buy the position of the head of the Odesa Regional State Administration for $20 million in cash, as the curators of the scheme had already calculated the amount of his agricultural assets. In addition, the businessman stated the commercialization of NSDC sanctions: according to him, the lists for restrictions were formed to the order of certain entrepreneurs to eliminate competitors, and some individuals were sold information about the future blocking of assets in advance so that they could transfer property to dummy persons.
Serhii Vahanyan is currently in one of the countries of the European Union under state protection and is trying to get the status of an official corruption whistleblower in NABU. In Ukraine, criminal proceedings have been opened against him on suspicion of embezzlement, but the businessman himself calls these cases a fabricated revenge of the security forces for his refusal to continue financing the schemes. While Russia is trying to use the corruption scandals in Ukraine to undermine the trust of international partners, such revelations become a serious challenge for the law enforcement system, which must prove its ability to self-purify even in the highest echelons of power.
As for Ivan Bakanov, he was dismissed from the post of SBU head in July 2022. Then we wrote that he received a lawyer’s license from the Poltava Region Bar Council.
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