Ukraine's law enforcement uncovers drone procurement corruption scheme involving lawmakers
Editor's Note: This story has been updated with additional comments from officials and news of Volodymyr Zelensky firing an official involved.
Ukraine's National Anti-Corruption Bureau (NABU) and the Specialized Anti-Corruption Prosecutor's Office (SAPO) exposed a bribery scheme involving a member of parliament, current and former regional officials, and the National Guard, the agencies announced on Aug. 2.
The officials involved in the plot allegedly appropriated funds intended for the procurement of drones and electronic warfare (EW) equipment, NABU reported.
The report comes shortly after President Volodymyr Zelensky signed a law passed by the parliament on July 31 restoring the independence of the two agencies — the country's principal anti-corruption bodies — after revoking their independence a few days earlier. The dismantling of NABU and SAPO sparked large-scale protests and international backlash.
The organized corruption ring exposed on Aug. 2 involved a Ukrainian MP, a former governor of Luhansk Oblast, the current heads of a district and city military administration, the head of a National Guard military unit, and the director of a company that supplies drones, NABU said.
Ukrainian media outlets identified the MP as Oleksii Kuznetsov, a member of Zelensky's Servant of the People party. Other exposed officials included Serhii Haidai (former Luhansk governor) and Andrii Yurchenko (head of Luhansk Oblast's Rubizhne district), Ukrainska Pravda reported, citing sources in law enforcement.
The investigation revealed that members of the group systematically appropriated government funds allocated for the military during 2024-2025. The perpetrators also acquired and doled out "unlawful benefits on an especially large scale."
One of the schemes uncovered by the investigation involved intentionally inflating a state contract for the purchase of EW systems. The officials received a kickback worth 30% of the contract in exchange for inflating the price.
Members of the group employed a similar strategy with a state contract for first-person-view (FPV) drones, the agencies said.
At this time, four people have been detained in connection with the bribery scheme.
David Arakhimia, head of the Servant of the People faction in the Verkhovna Rada (Ukraine's parliament), said that Kuznetsov would be dismissed from the faction for the duration of the corruption probe.
"We await the court hearing of this case in due course. Those guilty of corruption crimes must be punished fairly, regardless of their status or position," Arakhamia said.
Prime Minister Yuliia Svyrydenko also announced that the Cabinet of Ministers had convened an extraordinary meeting in response to the investigation. Zelensky later signed an order dismissing Haidai from his post as head of the Mukachevo district administration.
In response to the findings, Interior Minister Ihor Klymenko announced that the National Guard was working to implement "systematic safeguards" to prevent abuses of power. He also said the National Guard had removed the suspected officials from their posts and launched an internal investigation.
"We are building a system in which honest service is protected, and there will be inevitable responsibility for violations," Klymenko said.
Zelensky also responded to news of the corruption scheme, saying he expected "serious results" from Klymenko's reforms in the National Guard.
"In all logistics units in the National Guard, only combat officers will hold leadership positions," he said.
According to the Zelensky, NABU chief Semen Kryvonos and SAPO head Oleksandr Klymenko privately briefed the president about the findings of the corruption investigation.
"I am grateful to the anti-corruption bodies for their work," Zelensky wrote on Telegram.
"There can only be zero tolerance for corruption, clear teamwork to expose corruption, and ultimately a fair verdict. It is important that anti-corruption institutions work independently, and the law adopted on Thursday guarantees them all the opportunities for a real fight against corruption."
While Zelensky's comments praised the importance of the agencies' independence, the fact of the briefing itself is curious, as the anti-corruption organizations are expected to maintain their separation from the government.
One of the chief criticisms of the July 22 law that prompted mass demonstrations in Ukraine was that it would prevent anti-corruption agencies from investigation high-ranking officials without approval from Zelensky's administration.
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