Police tries to present a Dnipro film studio as an online casino: the director commented on the provocation

Police tries to present a Dnipro film studio as an online casino: the director commented on the provocation

The Dnipro Film Studio, which recently appealed to President Volodymyr Zelenskyy for protection of their business from law enforcement actions and to help preserve jobs, fears an informational provocation from the National Police.

This was reported by the Chief Operating Officer of the company "ORIGINAL SPIRIT UA" Valeriy Hrebenyuk. 

"Now I’ll explain the essence of the provocation. It’s very easy to obtain the relevant video content by going to a website that, so to speak, offers online casino services worldwide. There are millions of such sites. But we have no relation to them, as we produce video content and sell it to game developers. They then form the final product. For easier understanding - there are photo stocks where you can buy a photograph. It can be used as information for news or appear on a billboard advertising something. The photographer does not control where exactly these photos will be, but only transfers the rights to the photo stock and then receives a fixed fee for each download. We similarly receive a fixed fee for sold content, and that’s it. What did the police do? They found one online casino where our produced video content was used. They made a purchase - topped up an account in Tether (USDT) – (cryptocurrency), looked at which wallets those 20 dollars went to. As greedy and shallow people, they convinced each other that this wallet belongs to us, and as a result of their imagination, they fantasized a problem for us. Today they believe they caught a $250 million fish by the tail and refuse to accept reality. However, in fact, they simply found a crypto exchange where these funds are and which have no relation to the company "Original Spirit UA," the lawyer explains. He emphasizes that the logic of the law enforcement accusations is as ironclad as trying to blame the vodka manufacturer purchased by a driver who drove drunk for the accident. "We are watching the movie with interest," says Valeriy Hrebenyuk.

Why did the police decide to go for such a provocation? The film studio turned to President Volodymyr Zelenskyy asking for protection of their business from law enforcement actions and to help preserve jobs. In the appeal, it was emphasized that "specific law enforcement officers and judges serving their ’interests’ - Head of the Main Investigation Department of the National Police Maksym Tsutsikiridze and investigating judges of the Svyatoshinsky District Court in Kyiv Lyudmyla Kosyk, Anatoliy Yaselskyi, and Oleksandr Zhurybeda" are behind the attack on the business.

"We hope that the illegal actions of Tsutsikiridze’s subordinates will be noticed by his direct superiors - head of the National Police Ivan Vyhivskyi and Minister of Internal Affairs Ihor Klymenko, head of the Svyatoshinsky District Court in Kyiv Inna Pyatynchuk. We have approached the court with a petition for a criminal case by the State Bureau of Investigations to be initiated," emphasized the Chief Operating Officer.

The company "ORIGINAL SPIRIT UA" has been legally operating in Ukraine since 2021, producing video content for online games, which is exported to international markets. This is a licensed business that has paid more than 30 million hryvnias in taxes, invested over 100 million hryvnias in the economy, and provides employment for over 150 specialists. These are mostly women who solely support their families.

"However, for the second time in the past one and a half years, our company has become a victim of illegal criminal prosecution, resembling an attempt at raider pressure and racketeering. Law enforcement, violating all procedures, staged a multi-day search, seized equipment and property, unjustifiably imposed arrest on equipment, causing us damages worth 84 million hryvnias. This is a direct blow to a legitimate business that creates value for the country and its economy. We strive to work in Ukraine, invest in its economy, and create jobs. But for this, guarantees of justice and business protection are necessary," the company’s statement to the President of Ukraine says.

The company has already approached the court demanding the cancellation of illegal arrests and the return of property. However, we understand that without a systematic solution to this problem, without the intervention of state leaders, we risk losing not only the business but also faith in justice and the economic security of Ukraine.