USD 1M for unhindered drone supplies: new charges

NABU and SAPO have served an official of the State Border Guard Service of Ukraine and the owner of a private company with new notices of suspicion in a case concerning the extortion of an undue advantage for the unhindered supply of drones. The suspects face charges of bribery and money laundering (Part 2 of Article 369 and Part 2 of Article 209 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine).

According to the investigation, in August 2025, a drone manufacturer won a tender held by the State Border Guard Service after offering a lower price, despite a competitor’s request not to do so. The competitor had expected to win thanks to its connections with border guard officials.

After this plan fell through, the competitor, acting in collusion with State Border Guard Service officials, began demanding USD 1 million from the winner to ensure the smooth signing of the contract and the acceptance of the equipment.

Detectives have now uncovered an additional instance of bribery. Specifically, the competitor transferred 50,000 Tether (USDT) tokens to a State Border Guard Service official, equivalent to over UAH 2.1 million at the official exchange rate of the National Bank of Ukraine.

Furthermore, the investigation revealed that the border guard official repeatedly received illicit proceeds, which he concealed in crypto assets. Between January and April 2026, he converted more than UAH 15.4 million into Tether (USDT). Upon analyzing the transactions, detectives discovered that the official converted part of these assets into cash, which he used to buy a Mercedes-Benz GLC 300 and register it in his wife’s name.

Detectives discovered one of the crypto wallets during a search of the border guard’s residence.