Ukraine’s National Anti-Corruption Bureau (NABU) and the Specialized Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office (SAPO) have exposed a corruption scheme within the State Border Guard Service of Ukraine involving the systematic receipt of bribes in exchange for facilitating the unhindered crossing of the state border.
Among the suspects are:
- the former head of the State Border Guard Service, General Serhii Deineko;
- a current head of a department at a border crossing point of the State Border Guard Service;
- a former official of the State Border Guard Service.
The actions are classified under Part 4 of Article 27 and Part 4 of Article 368 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine.
According to investigators, in 2023 a group of individuals organized the illegal smuggling of cigarettes across Ukraine’s state border into the European Union. Senior officials of the State Border Guard Service facilitated the operation and, in return, regularly received illicit payments.
Between July and November 2023 alone, the border officials allegedly received at least €204,000 in bribes for allowing 68 vehicles to cross the border without obstruction — €3,000 per vehicle.
To conceal their activities, the perpetrators used vehicles registered in the Czech Republic and Austria, fitting them with special license plates resembling diplomatic plates. The passengers in these vehicles were holders of diplomatic passports — family members of Ukrainian diplomats based in Europe. Their presence allowed the vehicles to avoid inspection by border and customs authorities of EU member states.
Detectives also established that the senior Border Guard officials involved had previously served alongside the diplomats whose relatives later became participants in the scheme.