NABU and SAPO reported suspicions to members of a criminal group involved in a corruption scheme in the procurement of UAVs and electronic warfare equipment.

The National Anti-Corruption Bureau of Ukraine (NABU) and the Specialized Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office (SAP) have notified six persons of suspicion of involvement in a large-scale corruption scheme related to the purchase of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) and electronic warfare equipment (EW). About this it is said in the official notification of NABU.

Among the suspects:

• former head of the Luhansk regional state administration — ch. 5th century 191, ch. 3 Art. 28, ch. 4 Art. 368 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine;
• people’s deputy of Ukraine — ch. 5th century 191, ch. 3 Art. 28, ch. 4 Art. 368 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine;
• head of the city military administration — ch. 3 Art. 28, ch. 4 Art. 368 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine;
• commander of the military unit of the National Guard of Ukraine — h. 3 Art. 28, ch. 4 Art. 368 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine;
• the actual beneficiary of the UAV manufacturing company — ch. 5th century 191, ch. 2 Art. 28, ch. 1 Art. 114-1 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine;
• the director of the same company — ch. 5th century 191, ch. 2 Art. 28, ch. 1 Art. 114-1 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine.

In addition, the beneficiary and the director of the enterprise were charged with obstructing the lawful activities of the Armed Forces of Ukraine. According to the investigation, they recruited people for work and provided them with reservations for a fee, effectively making it impossible for them to join the ranks of the Armed Forces.

NABU and SAP previously exposed this scheme, which operated in 2024-2025. The investigation believes that the organized group systematically appropriated budget funds intended for the needs of the defense forces, which were allocated by local self-government bodies.

One of the confirmed episodes is the purchase of EW systems at a known inflated cost, where participants in the scheme received up to 30% of the contract amount in the form of an undue benefit. Similarly, the purchase of FPV drones for the amount of almost UAH 10 million was carried out. The cost of products was artificially increased by approximately 80 thousand US dollars, and part of the funds were later transferred in the form of “kickbacks”.

With the approval of the Prosecutor General, a petition was sent to the court to place the elected deputy on a preventive measure in the form of detention with the possibility of bail in the amount of 30 million hryvnias. A request for preventive measures against other participants in the case has also been submitted.