Ukraine returns from abroad over EUR3.3 mln stolen through corruption scheme of Ukraina printing house - NABU

The National Anti-Corruption Bureau of Ukraine (NABU) reported on Thursday that Ukraine has for the first time managed to return EUR3.38 million from abroad, stolen through the corruption scheme of the state enterprise Ukraina Printing House.

"EUR3.377 million (approximately UAH163 million at the NBU exchange rate) will be transferred to the state budget from a French company involved in the case of the NABU and the SAPO (Specialized Anti-Corruption Prosecutor's Office) regarding abuses at the state enterprise Ukraina Printing House. This is the first compensation in the history of anti-corruption bodies to be paid by a foreign entity. The agreement with the company was concluded by the National Financial Prosecutor's Office of France on July 8, and on September 3 it was approved by a court in Paris," the NABU said on Telegram.

The NABU and SAPO investigation established that the factory purchased materials from a French company at inflated prices through an Estonian front company, and the former director of the state-owned enterprise received an illegal benefit in the form of copyrights to the design of security elements of documents.

In total, eight people were reported under suspicion in the proceedings, including the former head of the state-owned enterprise Ukraina Printing House.

According to the report, this result was possible thanks to a joint investigative group of NABU, SAPO, law enforcement officers of France and Estonia under the auspices of Eurojust.

"Interaction with foreign colleagues was established through the OECD GLEN platform - the Global Network of Law Enforcement Practitioners, which helped establish stable and partnership relations with a large number of countries. The STAR (Stolen Asset Recovery) initiative also played an important role in the process," the NABU reported.

The work on representing Ukraine's interests in the French court was coordinated by the SAPO.

On May 23, it was reported that the anti-corruption authorities of Ukraine, as part of an international investigation, reported a new suspicion to the former head of the state enterprise Ukraina Printing House for a bribe in the form of copyrights for design elements of Ukrainian documents (a stylized trident and a map of Ukraine), as well as for the legalization of over EUR7 million in income.