Fabricated evidence to benefit SBU official: experts of state institution exposed

NABU and SAPO have notified forensic experts of the Kyiv Scientific Research Institute of Forensic Expertise (KSRIFE) of the Ministry of Justice of Ukraine of suspicion. The experts knowingly produced false reports regarding the value of luxury real estate owned by the wife of a high-ranking Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) official.

The suspects' actions fall under Parts 1 and 2 of Article 384, and Part 3 of Article 358 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine (misleading a court or another authorized body, combined with the fabrication of evidence; compilation of a knowingly forged official document by experts).

The investigation established that in December 2023, the high-ranking official's wife acquired an apartment for UAH 21.6 million. However, the purchase agreement intentionally understated its price to UAH 12.8 million.

In April 2024, a lawyer acting on the couple's behalf initiated a valuation and construction expert study at KSRIFE. As early as May, the panel issued a report concluding that the apartment's market value was UAH 12.3 million—undermining the actual value by UAH 9.3 million. To achieve this result, the experts deliberately used irrelevant real estate objects for comparison. Subsequently, this document was used by the defense as evidence before the NACP, NABU, and the court.

That same month, NABU detectives investigating the criminal proceeding regarding the purchase of the apartment ordered a commission expert examination with KSRIFE, which they recalled on November 11, 2024, requesting the return of the materials without execution.

However, the experts ignored the investigator's demand and continued the examination. They agreed to cap the value of comparable properties at no higher than USD 2,500–2,600 per square meter (instead of the market rate of USD 3,000) and deliberately selected the cheapest offers starting from USD 1,550, while ignoring other available comparable properties.

In early December 2024, the experts signed the report but backdated it to November 8, 2024 (i.e., before NABU withdrew it). Notably, detectives received a copy of the report not from KSRIFE, but from the suspected high-ranking official's attorney.

Such evidence manipulation would be impossible if an independent forensic institution operated within NABU. For several years running, the Bureau’s leadership has emphasized the critical necessity of creating an independent expert institution. This would eliminate corruption risks, prevent external pressure on experts, and significantly increase the efficiency of pre-trial investigations in high-level corruption cases.