Former official of the State Food and Grain Corporation of Ukraine sentenced to 10 years in prison for corruption

Former official of the State Food and Grain Corporation of Ukraine sentenced to 10 years in prison for corruption

The High Anti-Corruption Court (HACC) has sentenced one of the former executives of PJSC "State Food and Grain Corporation of Ukraine" (SFGCU) to 10 years in prison with a three-year ban on holding positions. He is accused of implementing a corruption scheme in 2014, together with other officials, where SFGCU-owned grain was sold at reduced prices to one of the international grain traders through a network of controlled private intermediary companies.

This was reported by the Specialized Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office (SAPO). The name of the former official was not disclosed, but according to journalist Oleh Novikov , it is Anatoliy Zavadskyi, who was:

• former deputy director of the financial and economic department of SFGCU;
• advisor to the former chairman of the board of SFGCU, Petro Vovchuk.

In addition to the prison term, Zavadsky was also fined 17,000 UAH with confiscation of all his property.

"The accused was taken into custody in the courtroom. In addition, the court partially satisfied the claim of GNSCU against the accused for more than 45 million UAH," the statement said.

However, the verdict is not final yet. It can be appealed in appellate proceedings within 30 days from the date of its announcement by filing an appeal with the Appellate Chamber of HACC.

Case Details

As noted by SAP, Zavadskyi is accused of implementing, together with other officials, a scheme in 2014 where SFGCU-owned grain was sold at reduced prices to one of the international grain traders. A network of private intermediary companies controlled by:

• SFGCU officials;
• the mentioned grain trader.

"Grain purchased at reduced prices was sold by the international grain trader at market prices, and the price difference was supposed to be credited to the accounts of one of the intermediary companies controlled by the accused. According to the contracts, the grain was delivered on a cash-on-delivery basis, which did not comply with established market rules and exposed the state enterprise to the risk of not receiving payment for its products," the law enforcement statement said.

As a result, they noted, SFGCU did not receive a significant portion of the funds for the sold grain, resulting in losses of more than $60 million.