SE Ukrainian Sea Ports Authority case: agreement for 290 million UAH was declared invalid
The agreement between the State Enterprise «Ukrainian Sea Ports Authority» (hereinafter – SE USPA) and the Limited Liability Company (LLC) «Tekhnmorgidrostroy Mykolaiv» on dredging works in ports of Ukraine for a total amount of 290 million UAH was declared invalid. The Commercial Court of Kyiv made the decision on January 24, 2019. Thus, the court completely satisfied the lawsuit filed by the National Anti-Corruption Bureau of Ukraine (NABU) in August 2018 in order to protect the state interests.
This court decision is the result of the effective cooperation between the NABU Detectives, the employees of the NABU Legal Department and the prosecutors of the Specialized Anti-Corruption Prosecutor's Office (SAPO). The overpayment of funds can be returned to the State according to court decision. Also, the abovementioned decision confirms the version of the investigation on anticompetitive actions of the officials of the SE USPA and the LLC «Tekhnmorgidrostroy Mykolaiv» during the conclusion of agreement.
The agreement for 290 million UAH is the second contract declared by the court invalid on the basis of materials collected by the NABU Detectives in the framework of the pre-trial investigation of the criminal proceeding as of the facts of funds embezzlement of the SE USPA in 2015-2017 during the state procurement of dredging services for approach channels and water areas of the Berdyansk and Mariupol seaports. The first agreement for 712 million UAH was declared invalid on July 18, 2018.
The NABU Detectives started the investigation of the SE Ukrainian Sea Ports Authority case in December 2015. The pre-trial investigation was completed in September 2018. Currently the case is being considered at the Shevchenkivsky District Court of Kyiv.
Within the investigation, the NABU Detectives established that 10 persons were involved in the commission of a crime. The indictments as of 8 persons were sent to court. 1 person was put on the wanted list. 1 person signed a plea bargain agreement. 734 thousand UAH of losses caused to the SE were refunded, the vessel was seized.