Yakubovskyi Vladyslav Boleslavovych

Yakubovskyi Vladyslav Boleslavovych
Vladyslav Boleslavovych Yakubovskyi is a scandalous official of the Yanukovych era, one of the heads of the Trade Commodity group of companies, a participant in corrupt tenders for food, fuel and lubricants supply to the Ukrainian Railways (Ukrzaliznytsia) and the Armed Forces, and a business partner of traitors to Ukraine, Viktor Medvedchuk and MP Oleksandr Ponomaryov.

Vladyslav Yakubovskyi

Personal file

He was born in Khmelnytskyi (Ukraine) on October 30, 1978. He started his career in 2000 at Galychyna Energo (Ivano-Frankivsk).

In 2001-2008, he was an employee of Astra-Invest and Astra-Trade. These companies are associated with the Kyiv Seven, namely Valentyn Zhurskyi and Bohdan Hubskyi. Astra-Invest, Astra-Trade, and a number of Zhurskyi's and Hubskyi's companies were headed by one person, Ivan Basarab.

In 2008, Vladyslav Yakubovskyi worked as an advisor to the head of Khmelnytskyi Regional Administration.

In November 2008, Yakubovskyi became Director of Mezon-K, a company linked to Yura ‘Yenakiievskyi’.

In 2010, he worked as Deputy Head of the State Reserve Committee and later headed the commission on reorganization of the structure.

Between 2011 and April 2013, he headed the State Environmental Investment Agency, which was created to use the money Ukraine received under the Kyoto Protocol.

Since 2014, he has been the de facto head of the Trade Commodity group of companies, which was created under Petro Poroshenko by entrepreneurs close to him, Andrii Adamovskyi and Oleksandr Hranovskyi.

Companies related to Yakubovskyi

1. Construction Point (founded in 2009). The authorized capital is UAH 500 thousand. Yakubovskyi owns 50% of the company, with another 25% each belonging to Zaza Zozirov and Georgian citizen Zaza Humberidze. The signatory is Iryna Shvedovska.

2. Sinergia Logistics Company (founded in 2015). The authorized capital is UAH 716 thousand. Yakubovskyi owns 30% of the company (currently through Eurasia), Danylo Konstantinov - 25%, Valerii Lozutov - 25% and Yan Nemyrovskyi - 20%. Until 2020, the company was headed by Dymitrii Medviediev, who was replaced by Oleh Bondar. Sinergia's office used to be located in the Eurasia business center, along with the offices of Hranovskyi and Adamovskyi.

3. Eurasia Investment Company (founded in 2016). The authorized capital is UAH 1 million. Yakubovskyi owns 50% of the company, while another 50% is owned by Dmytro Adamovskyi, son of Andrii Adamovskyi, through the Centaurus venture fund.

4. Ukrainian Locomotive Company (founded in 2016). The authorized capital is UAH 114.4 thousand. Yakubovskyi and Adamovskyi own 30% of the company through the Eurasia investment company. 29% is owned by Volodymyr Vitnytskyi through Full Trading, another 29.9% is owned by Pavlo Tishchenko through Solar Energy Green, and 10% from 2021 belongs to Oleksandr Sliusarchuk. The company's office was also previously located in the Eurasia business center.

5. Association of Ukrainian Railway Carriers (founded in 2019). Its founders are the Ukrainian Locomotive Construction Company, co-owned by Yakubovskyi, and the Western Ukrainian Logistics Company, which is registered with lawyer Oleh Yarema. The company's signatory is Andrii Miroshnikov, the former Head of the Commercial Department of Ukrzaliznytsia.

Corruption scandals involving Yakubovsky

Embezzlement of Kyoto Protocol funds

In 2011, Vladyslav Yakubovskyi took over as Chairman of the State Environmental Investment Agency. This organization was specially created to utilize the Kyoto Protocol funds that are transferred to our country to combat emissions into the atmosphere. In 2012, the State Agency for Environmental Protection allocated UAH 1.2 billion (later increased to UAH 1.7 billion) to three companies, Stroyinvest 2007, Antis Trade, and Sodetel, to insulate 323 kindergartens, schools, hospitals, and nursing homes. These funds were allocated without competition.

Of the three, two companies had previously compromised themselves, as they had previously participated in dubious schemes for Ukrzaliznytsia. Stroyinvest 2007 was a fictitious competitor in tenders won by companies of the Haiduk-Taruta group. Antis Trade reconstructed the Donetsk railway station: the cost of the work mysteriously doubled.

In autumn of 2012, it turned out that the program was hardly being implemented: the phone numbers of the companies were not answered, there was no one at the registered addresses, and Sodetal had given the contract to Karpatybudinvest, a company linked to Yura ‘Yenakiievskyi’.

Journalists of Ukrainska Pravda discovered Yura ‘Yenakiievskyi's’ connection to all three that were used as shell companies. The Nashi Groshi publication claimed that Sodetel was founded by Donetsk businessman Viktor Mihdisov. He is known for organizing a fashion show for his wife at Yanukovych's helipad and demolishing the building of the Information Department of Donetsk State Regional Administration so that Yanukovych's son could build the Stolychnyi business center there. Antis Trade was located at the same address as Hormashnsab LLC, which is run by one of Ivaniushchenko's well-known managers, Andrii Ostapko. Later, Antis Trade moved to another location on 18 Chihorin Street. Oil River LLC, one of the key assets of Yura Yenakiievskyi's business empire, was registered at the same address.

As a result of the State Environmental Investment Agency’s activity under Yakubovskyi's leadership, most of the work was not completed, and the money disappeared.

In 2012, Yakubovskyi wrote a letter to Prime Minister Azarov that partner countries other than Russia and Belarus refused to finance activities in Ukraine under the Kyoto Protocol. In the same year, at a UN conference, Yakubovskyi announced Ukraine's plans to increase carbon emissions, which contradicts the Kyoto Protocol.

After the Maidan, Yakubovskyi was dismissed from his post, but Volodymyr Bandurov, who had previously been an assistant to Vladyslav Yakubovskyi, became the head of the Agency.

Low-quality products for the Armed Forces of Ukraine

In 2008-2009, Vladyslav Yakubovskyi served as Deputy Director of Mezon-K. The company was accused of embezzling funds from the Ministry of Defense on food for the military. Mezon-K bought products for the Ministry at 2 times the market price. In the government, the lobbyist for Mezon-K was Mykhailo Yezhel, Minister-to-be of Defense, and at that time, Chief Inspector of the Ministry.

Investigative journalists proved that Yezhel was promoted to the post of Minister by Yura ‘Yenakiievskyi. Ivaniushchenko's man Dmitriy Medviediev, who would later become Head of Yakubovskyi's company, is also mentioned. Dubious methods, like artificially organized food poisoning of military personnel, were used to promote new contractors for tenders.

Trade Commodity as a regular tender winner under Poroshenko

The Trade Commodity Group is an extensive system of companies that was established under President Poroshenko and became the largest winner of tenders for the supply of fuel to Ukrainian government agencies.

The Nashi Hroshi publication, having analyzed the Public Procurement Bulletin and data from the Prozzoro system, came to the conclusion that under Poroshenko, Trade Commodity companies won tenders worth UAH 17 billion for the supply of fuel to the state, with the money received from the following customers:

1. Production Support Center branch of Ukrzaliznytsia JSC - UAH 10.28 billion.
2. Ministry of Defense of Ukraine - UAH 5.53 billion.
3. State Reserve Agency of Ukraine - UAH 0.42 billion.
4. Tsentrenergo JSC - UAH 0.23 billion.
5. Vilnohirsk MMC branch of UMCC JSC - UAH 0.10 billion

The funds were distributed among only 6 companies:
1. Trade Commodity LLC - UAH 5.18 billion
2. Fideia LLC - UAH 3.34 billion.
3. August Prom LLC - UAH 3.20 billion.
4. Optimus Connection LLC (Gaztrade) - UAH 3.06 billion.
5. Torum LLC - UAH 1.97 billion.
6. Meta Oil LLC - UAH 0.22 billion.

In politics, the group's activities were covered by MP Oleksandr Hranovskyi, the investor was businessman Andrii Adamovskyi, and the group was directly managed by Vladyslav Yakubovskyi.

Trade Commodity's corrupt practices in tenders

According to media reports, Trade Commodity is directly linked to Andrii Adamovskyi and was registered in the Eurasia Business Center, which housed several of Adamovskyi and Hranovskyi's shell-companies – Trade Commodity, Maxmed, and Torum.

In 2016, the Ministry of Defense held a tender for the purchase of fuel. An unknown company from Dniprodzerzhynsk, Trade Commodity, won almost all the lots. The total value of the contracts was UAH 1.24 billion. The journalists discovered the peculiarities of the tender: WOG, as a competitor, literally gave the victory to Yakubovskyi's Trade Commodity, but then supplied its own fuel through a shell company to fulfill the contract. After the tender, the Defense Ministry and Yakubovskyi's company agreed to raise the price of fuel twice, and these facts were hidden. As a result, the Ministry overpaid Trade Commodity at least UAH 100 million. Two years later, the NABU completed its investigation into the case: the Deputy Minister, officials of the Public Procurement Department, and the actual owner of Trade Commodity were found guilty.

In 2019, in an interview with Ekonomichna Pravda, Andrii Adamovskyi said that the ultimate beneficiaries of Trade Commodity were a ‘group of young guys’ but did not name them, and that Trade Commodity itself had started bankruptcy proceedings.

Fraud with Torum's tenders

In 2017, the media began calling Torum a clone of Trade Commodity. “Torum is linked to Yakubovskyi through its beneficiary, Dmytriy Medviediev, who until 2020 ran Sinergia, one of Yakubovskyi's companies. Torum's office was located in the Eurasia Business Center and was often called a ‘firm from Trade Commodity’s orbit.’

After Ukrzaliznytsia introduced a special certification for companies that can supply lubricants, Torum became one of two such companies. The second was Agrinol, which is associated with former MP Oleksandr Ponomariov.

Torum was regularly caught in tax evasion and disruption of fuel supply tenders. In 2018, the company won a tender to supply diesel fuel to Astra, but did not deliver the fuel: prices rose and the State Reserve refused to raise the price.

In 2018, Yakubovskyi's Torum tried to sell the Ministry of Defense petrol, which is banned in our country (earlier, the company Trade Commodity tried to do the same.

In 2018, Torum supplied diesel fuel worth UAH 700 million to Ukrzaliznytsia at an inflated price and failed to pay UAH 920 million in taxes on the import of fuel and lubricants to Ukraine. This is the conclusion reached by the SFS.

According to media reports, in 2020, Timur Valiiev, a man close to Arsen Avakov, became Head of Ukrzaliznytsia’s tender department. A month later, the fuel crisis began: the winners of the supply tenders refused to supply diesel fuel at the agreed price, as the market price had risen. The largest supplier was Torum, which used blackmail to force a 30% price increase from Ukrzaliznytsia.

Disruption of tenders by Yakubovskyi's companies

In 2017, Ukrzaliznytsia announced a tender for the purchase of 250 freight gondola cars for UAH 304 million. Kriukov and Popasna plants and an unknown company, Maxmed International, were allowed to participate in the tender. This company had to have at least 2 contracts for similar procurements to participate in the tender, but provided only one. Although this is a clear violation of the tender conditions, it was allowed to participate in the competition. At the same time, Maxmed International (part of the Trade Commodity Group) won another tender for UAH 60 million from Ukrzaliznytsia.

During the tender process, Maxmed appealed to the AMCU to exclude the Kriukiv plant from the tender. Subsequently, Maxmed challenged Ukrzaliznytsia's tenders totaling UAH 8 billion. In 2017 alone, Maxmed filed 157 procurement complaints. VoxUkraine explicitly calls such actions ‘sabotage’ and Nashi Hroshi calls them ‘tender troll’.

Supply of low-quality fuel to the Ministry of Defense and Ukrzaliznytsia

The next fraud scheme was the supply of ‘bogus fuel’ to government agencies. The Main Investigation Department of the National Police found that in 2015-2016, companies from the Trade Commodity group sold "mixtures of oil fractions containing hazardous chemicals" under the guise of A-80, A-92, A-95 gasoline and diesel fuel. The list included 4 suppliers to Trade Commodity: UkrPetrol LLC, Element Oil LLC, Western Oil and Gas Company LLC, and Aleksprom LLC. The ‘bogus fuel’ was prepared in an illegal oil refinery on the territory of the state-owned Pavlohrad Chemical Plant. Low-quality fuel was sold by Trade Commodity, among others, and the buyers were Southern, Southwestern, and Lviv Railways.

In 2017, Vadym Mosiychuk, Head of the State Reserve, accused Trade Commodity of supplying low-quality fuel. Two weeks after the delivery, petrol began to stratify in the tanks. In 2019, according to the SFS, the country imported fuels and lubricants (diesel fuel, petrol, jet fuel for aviation fuel for JET A-1 gas turbine engines, base oil) with underpayment of customs duties. The oil products were mixed and sold to enterprises at inflated prices.

According to the investigation, Ferst Group LLC (which supplied the Ministry of Defense with petrol worth UAH 0.5 billion in the same year), Soft Oil LLC, Fideia Firm LLC, Torum LLC, Gold System LLC, August Prom LLC, Optimus Connection LLC, Itioli LLC, SkyTorg LLC, Meta Oil LLC, and Mergen LLC were involved in the criminal activity. These are all Trade Commodity structures managed by Yakubovskyi.

This scheme is a cover for the import of diesel fuel under the guise of aviation fuel for JET A-1 gas turbine engines instead of another excisable product - diesel fuel, which has a much higher tax rate. Until the end of 2018, the nomenclature of aviation fuel was subject to customs clearance at the excise tax rate of EUR 21 per 1000 liters. At the same time, the excise tax rate on diesel fuel was EUR 139.5 per 1000 liters. While the supply of base oil, which is not an excisable product, is not subject to excise tax at all. In fact, a scheme was created to make a cosmic profit based on excise tax evasion alone: buy jet fuel and base oil, mix them in a ratio of 85% to 15%, and sell them to the state as diesel fuel. This is exactly how the Commodity Group operated throughout the entire period of their existence. It is also noteworthy that during a certain period, kerosene and oil were purchased from Medvedchuk's Rosneft and ‘refined’ at oil depots in Kherson and Dnipro oblasts.

Involvement of Yakubovskyi's companies in VAT refund fraud

After the war started, the Defense Ministry continued to pay 7% VAT to fuel suppliers. However, at the beginning of the war, the government set a zero rate for fuel if it was needed for the Armed Forces. According to the SAS, a private supplier diverted this money from circulation through fraud schemes. The SBU cannot find this supplier. This company not only failed to refund VAT, but also sold fuel at a significant markup: UAH 56-62 thousand per ton or UAH 57-62 per liter. Although such prices were not available at gas stations at that time. According to media reports, this supplier is Yakubovskyi's company.

Attempt to disrupt open Prozorro tenders of the Ministry of Defense

After the scandal with overpriced food for the military, the Defense Ministry held open tenders for the purchase of food for the Armed Forces. We managed to save UAH 6 billion on procurement. The main outsider of the Defense Ministry's open bidding, associated with the Trade Commodity group of companies, is trying to disrupt the tenders through the courts.

Activists accused Trade Granit Invest of trying to disrupt open tenders on Prozzoro for the purchase of products for the Armed Forces. The owner of this company, Yuliia Pavlichenko, also owned Maxmed International, one of the most scandalous companies in the Trade Commodity group. Yakubovskyi's company used massive lawsuits in courts and a ‘black’ information campaign against members of the Anti-Corruption Council at the Ministry of Defense to disrupt the Defense Ministry's open tenders in Prozorro. For example, to discredit Dana Yarova, Council member and civic activist, they paid for false media materials worth about $100 thousand. They also involved pro-Russian media outlets such as Anatolii Sharii, Vadym Rabinovych, and the Resident Telegram channel in slandering Yarova. However, the courts refused to satisfy massive lawsuits regarding the legality of the Defense Ministry's tenders.

Damage to a defense enterprise engaged in combat aircraft modernization

According to the BES case file, Trade Commodity companies used the state-owned enterprise as a shell company for non-commodity transactions. To do this, they ‘engaged’ the Electronprylad Research and Production Complex, a state-owned enterprise that modernizes combat aircraft, including production of onboard generalized systems for integrated crew control and warning for MiG-29 and SU-27 aircraft. Yakubovskyi's companies received promissory notes from Electronprylad for tens of millions of hryvnias, which they redeemed at the State Tax Service, evading the excise tax on fuel. In total, the bank repaid promissory notes for more than UAH 70 million.

At the same time, Electronprylad registered tax invoices for the buyer, KHIMPRODUKT PLUS LLC, for a total VAT amount of UAH 36.13 million, using the tax credit generated on fuel. This shell company did not buy fuel from the state enterprise, but an organic solvent. The total losses of the state defense enterprise are estimated at UAH 120 million.

Scandals and dirt

Cooperation with traitors of the country

MP Oleksandr Ponomariov is suspected of high treason. According to the investigation, when the full-scale war began, he went to Berdiansk and set up his Azmol and Agrinol companies to supply fuel and lubricants for Russian military equipment.

Over the past 10 years, tenders by Ukrzaliznytsia and the Ministry of Defense for the supply of motor oil have been divided by Ponomariov between Medvedchuk's structures (Cornet Oil, Glusko, Proton Energy) and Adamovskyi-Yakubovskyi's Trade Commodity group of companies (Torum, Fideia, August Prom, and others).

The monopolization of these tenders by two bidders was achieved by artificially restricting competition. The conditions for admission to tenders were set in such a way that the products of individual suppliers were suitable for them.

Under Poroshenko, Ukrzaliznytsia introduced a special certification, which only Ponomariov's Agrinol and Yakubovskyi's Torum were able to pass. These companies supplied 7.9 thousand tonnes in 2018 (Agrinol) and 7.8 thousand tonnes (Trade Commodity companies).

The Ministry of Defense had a similar scheme: the terms of tenders for the supply of oils of a certain brand were written for only one company, Agrinol. However, Trade Commodity made money by selling fuel to Agrinol.

The biggest problem from these corruption schemes became apparent during the war. As it turned out, the fuel for Ukrainian fighters was of poor quality. Hero of Ukraine, tanker Yevhen Palchenko said that his tank overheated because of the Azmol oil, which caused it to constantly stop, while the enemy was very close.

Even after numerous scandals, Trade Commodity Group companies still win tenders from the Ministry of Defense and Ukrzaliznytsia.

Despite numerous scandals, Trade Commodity Group companies are still present in tenders of Ukrzaliznytsia and the Ministry of Defense. Moreover, they are still planning to enter the aviation fuel market, which is currently in demand only by combat aircraft for obvious reasons.

Connection with the Savlokha organized crime group

Yakubovskyi's business partner Zaza Zazirov was an active member of the Savlokha organized crime group. Zozirov became Yakubovskyi's partner in Construction Point in 2009, at which time Yakubovskyi was already working with Yurii Ivaniushchenko.

Connection with the international fraudster Parnas

As part of the impeachment case against Donald Trump, US intelligence has published correspondence between Lev Parnas, a well-known international con artist, and Interior Minister Arsen Avakov. Parnas asked the minister to help the Ukrainian Locomotive Company and Yakubovskyi start transportation on the Lviv Railway. Parnas is currently in prison for illegal financing of election campaigns.

Yakubovskyi's personal connections

Yurii Ivaniushchenko, Oleksandr Hranovskyi, Andrii Adamovskyi, Oleksandr Ponomariov, Bohdan Hubskyi, Viktor Yanukovych, Volodymyr Bandurov, and Viktor Medvedchuk.