Case Against Former Top Prosecutor Sent to Court Over 641 Million UAH Budget Loss
The case against former Deputy Head of Department of the General Prosecutor's Office Kostiantyn Kulyk has been sent to court; he is accused of aiding a tax official in abuse of office, resulting in state budget losses of over 641 million hryvnias.
Prosecutors from the Specialized Anti-Corruption Prosecutor's Office (SAPO), based on materials from the National Anti-Corruption Bureau (NABU) pre-trial investigation, have sent to court an indictment against Kostiantyn Kulyk, former deputy head of a department of the General Prosecutor's Office of Ukraine, who is evading investigation. The investigation revealed that Kulyk facilitated one of the heads of the State Fiscal Service (SFS) in abusing his official position.
According to the case, a business entity filed a complaint with the SFS regarding a tax collection decision. The first deputy head of the SFS, whose duties included signing decisions on complaint reviews, failed to sign the prepared draft decision within the established timeframe due to the suspect's assistance. On the last day of the complaint review period, the prosecutor requested all inspection materials, allowing the tax official to avoid making a decision due to lack of documents. Consequently, the complaint was automatically granted, and the state budget lost the opportunity to collect taxes and penalties exceeding 641 million hryvnias.
Kulyk's actions are classified under Part 5 of Article 27 and Part 2 of Article 364 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine, which carries a maximum penalty of six years' imprisonment. On March 2, an investigating judge of the High Anti-Corruption Court ordered Kulyk's pre-trial detention. Since Kulyk is evading justice, after his arrest and transfer to the place of pre-trial investigation, the judge will decide on the application of this preventive measure.
