There are many well-known businessmen in Ukraine who actively support sports and invest significant funds in its development. Among them, Oleksandr Svishchev and Hryhoriy Kozlovsky are very controversial figures.
Reading their official, “decent biographies,” we can learn the following:
Oleksandr Svishchev is actively developing water polo. The Dynamo Lviv team, which he manages, is leading in the 2023/2024 Water Polo Super League. He also heads the Water Polo Federation of Ukraine and pays significant attention to children's sports, being the president of the Tennis Federation of the Lviv region. Oleksandr organizes and finances children's sports events, and also builds sports grounds in schools. His significant project is the Leoland sports and entertainment complex in Lviv.
Hryhoriy Kozlovsky has been supporting FC Rukh since 2009, and in 2018 he created the Rukh Football Academy. Thanks to his funding, the club rose to the UPL level. Kozlovsky also helps youth and amateur football teams throughout Ukraine, finances the construction and reconstruction of sports facilities, and supports sports initiatives for people with disabilities.
But where do Svishchev and Kozlovsky get the money to engage in sports philanthropy?
Former mechanic Svishchev and former customs broker Kozlovsky started out with small businesses in the automotive industry, but then moved into smuggling and became important players in this field. However, their activities were impossible without the help of criminal groups abroad, because someone had to accept the smuggled goods in the European Union countries. This confirms the existence of a well-coordinated organization involved in smuggling various goods, including cigarettes, alcohol and illegal migrants.
The beginning of October 2021 in Hungary was marked by an incident at the Čepel pier, when, due to a crane breakdown, a barge, allegedly delivering salt of the “Artemsol” brand from Ukraine, was sent for unloading to the city of Paks. During the unloading, it turned out that under the layer of salt there was a huge batch of smuggled cigarettes. According to the Hungarian authorities, 2,375,465 packs. This incident aroused considerable interest among law enforcement agencies.
The recipient of the smuggled cigarettes is the Polish company Crystal Invest with Ukrainian owners. It was founded by Vyacheslav Badagov, the son of the former Deputy Minister of Transport and Communications, as the company itself reports on its website and social networks. According to YouControl, Vyacheslav Badagov founded 15 companies and is connected to 42 other organizations operating in various fields, mainly registered in the Poltava region. His father is also a member of the supervisory board of the Poltava Mining and Processing Plant.
Polish company Crystal Invest, recipient of Marvel cigarettes, produced at the Vynnyky Tobacco Factory in Lviv region, at the facilities of the former “Lviv Tobacco Factory”.
Businessman and regional council member Hryhoriy Kozlovsky controls the Vynnyky Tobacco Factory. He is also connected to the Marvel trading house, owned by another Lviv deputy, Oleksiy Riznik. Kozlovsky has been repeatedly accused of smuggling and other offenses.
The State Fiscal Service sent official letters to the regional department of the Tax Service and to the chairman of the Verkhovna Rada Committee on Finance, Taxes and Customs as part of the investigation into the “tobacco” tax evasion scheme.
There is a possibility that the business of Hryhoriy Kozlovsky, who owns enterprises in western Ukraine, may be connected to MP Vasyl Petevka, who is sometimes called the “curator of cigarette smuggling” in Transcarpathia. Both appear on the list of MPs and officials associated with the “tobacco” influence group. In the past, Petevka spoke out about suspicious cigarette supplies and even advocated blocking the law on the protection of public health from the harmful effects of tobacco smoke.
In 2021 alone, the level of illegal cigarette trade, according to TNS Kantar, reached 12.8%, which is a historical record for Ukraine. On average, 6.5 billion cigarettes are sold in the country annually without paying excise taxes, resulting in a loss of 12 billion hryvnias to the state budget.
These are serious funds that could be used to pay pensions and salaries. The lack of reaction from the authorities to such losses indicates the presence of officials within the system who benefit from this.
Such scandals also undermine Ukraine's reputation. The last shipment of cigarettes to Hungary caused a huge scandal. President Volodymyr Zelensky has already intervened in the situation, summoning the head of the Customs Service for a conversation. But the issues remain with law enforcement agencies. The media has repeatedly published cases of cigarette smuggling, but the schemes continue to operate. This casts doubt on the effectiveness of measures to combat corruption.
The investigation into the case of cigarette supplies to Hungary could be a test for the authorities and show how ready they are to fight corruption. This requires not only statements, but also real actions.
Who is Grigory Kozlovsky?
Hryhoriy Kozlovsky stands out for his unusual behavior, which puts him in the spotlight. He often causes scandals and provokes discussions with his actions. For example, as a deputy of the Lviv City Council, he often appears there with armed guards and can cause a scandal at meetings. He also attracts attention with his business projects in Lviv and its surroundings, including the football club "Rukh", which under his leadership also became the subject of a scandal.
Kozlovsky reveals unusual methods of doing business, violating the standard rules that business should be hidden and quiet. Despite this, his main business - hotels and restaurants - is successfully functioning. He presents himself as a hotelier and restaurateur, owning such establishments as the “Grand Hotel”, “Royal Brewery” and others.
Although his business empire is located in Lviv, Kozlovsky's main source of income and inspiration is in quiet Vynnyky, home to the Lviv Tobacco Factory, which he has owned for over twenty years.
Hryhoriy Kozlovsky began his career at the Lviv Tobacco Factory back in 1994 after graduating from the Lviv Institute of Trade and Economics. Starting there at the age of 23, he took on the position of customs clearance specialist, which became the starting point for his impressive career in the tobacco industry.
Despite his current success and ownership of various businesses, Kozlovsky often talks about his difficult childhood. He grew up in a disadvantaged area of Nowy Rozdól in a small one-room apartment and faced environmental challenges. His first income was collecting bottles after parties in the park.
Kozlovsky entered university, attracted by the opportunity to play football for the trade and economic team. This led to his admission to the institute and obtaining a specialty in accounting and analysis.
At the tobacco factory, he proved himself to be a competent specialist, especially in the field of customs clearance of products, which brought him recognition and promotion. As a result, he became the head of the foreign economic activity department, which served as the starting point for further success.
It is actually known that the chief accountant at the Lviv Tobacco Factory was Hryhoriy Kozlovsky's mother-in-law. Her influence probably also contributed to his rapid career. When in 1998 an American investor decided to liquidate the enterprise, Kozlovsky already had his own positions among the management of the Vynnyky tobacco companies.
After the Volyn Tobacco Company acquired the factory, he was appointed commercial manager at the newly created Lviv Tobacco Factory LLC. It seemed like a modest position, but it offered enormous opportunities for a person with business potential.
Although Volyntyutyun had no experience in cigarette production, the company was a serious participant in the wholesale tobacco market. The launch of its own cigarette production was driven by their strategic goals, which coincided with the interests of the mafia to which Kozlovsky belonged.
Former director of the tobacco factory Volodymyr Kvurt accused the multinational company Philip Morris of ordering a provocative action at the factory, presumably to intimidate Lviv competitors. These allegations were confirmed by the Lviv police, which reported conducting searches on the territory of the factory and discovering counterfeit cigarettes with the Philip Morris brand. These events, as they say, could not have happened without reason.
Nevertheless, in 2005, Grigory Kozlovsky, who had previously been considered a poor son-in-law, already had enough capital to open his restaurant “Sviatoslav” in Vynnyky. This was the first of a series of restaurant enterprises owned by Kozlovsky. However, his restaurant endeavors will be discussed later.
In 2006, the tobacco business began to face difficulties due to changes in Ukrainian legislation, and cigarette production at the factory was suspended. The factory director, Volodymyr Kvurt, became secretary of the Lviv City Council, and Hryhoriy Kozlovsky founded his own company, Mega Euro Stroy, although its activities were closely related to the tobacco business.
One of the tasks of “Mega Euro Stroy” was to ensure the supply of equipment for the organization of “left” cigarette production lines. According to the ORD website, a year after the company was founded, it was already engaged in the supply of equipment from abroad. After “Volyntyutyun” left the game, the Lviv factory established ties with the Russian “Baltic Tobacco Factory” (BTF), and together with them, Kozlovsky and his partners launched the production of “Jin Ling” cigarettes in Vynnyky in 2007.
Over time, the company “Volyntyutyun” ceases to be mentioned in the context of the factory in Vynnyky. In 2010, LLC “Lviv Tobacco Factory” officially began producing cigarettes, with Hryhoriy Kozlovskyi as its owner and director. Later, in 2011, another company appeared – LLC “Vynnyky Tobacco Factory”, also founded by him. However, both companies were later transferred to other owners. Despite the confusing ownership structure, the real owner of the factory in Vynnyky continues to be Hryhoriy Kozlovskyi, or rather, the people he represents.
It was a very complex organization, and illegal activity of this scale in Ukrainian conditions was probably impossible without the support of law enforcement agencies. Among those who “covered” the cigarette business of Kozlovsky and his company were the heads of the State Anti-Corruption Bureau, the heads of the regional police, and generals from the central apparatus of the Ministry of Internal Affairs. It is said that Kozlovsky personally transferred large sums of money to Vitaly Zakharchenko, the Minister of Internal Affairs when Yanukovych was president.
Personal contact with Kozlovsky was made by Roman Mud, an employee of the Department of Drug Control, who was involved in organizing the supply channels of smuggled cigarettes to Europe. According to other sources, tobacco fraudsters collaborated with conversion centers, using “one-day firms” to conduct pseudo-operations and ensure illegal cigarette production.
The essence was that the “envelope” purchased unused materials from a tobacco factory and faked transactions through well-known companies, thus organizing the hidden production of cigarettes, which were then distributed in Ukraine and abroad (smuggling) for cash.
In fact, the raw materials that were imported, and indeed sold through shell companies, created certain obstacles for law enforcement agencies. For many years, the activities of the criminal cigarette syndicate attracted the attention of both the media and political figures in Ukraine.
Gennady Moskal, the governor of Transcarpathia, has been one of the most vocal accusers of the Lviv “tobacco empire” and Hryhoriy Kozlovsky in cigarette smuggling. He explicitly named the Vynnyky factory as the main supplier of cigarettes illegally smuggled abroad. He also claimed to have discovered manufacturers in other regions of Ukraine who were counterfeiting cigarettes under the “Lviv Tobacco Factory” brand.
However, Kozlovsky remained silent about other cigarette brands that were also the subject of accusations. Among the figures known for their activity in the shadow business, Oleksandr Svishchev, also known as “Syvy”, stands out. It is said that he is often seen at the tobacco factory, where he behaves not as a guest, but as an active participant in the process. village of Pidbereztsy near Vynnyky.
His difference from others is due to the fact that cooperation with Kozlovsky was not only forced, but also based on long-term friendly relations. The partners also share business interests in many areas, including the hotel and restaurant business. Together they build estates and have joint land plots with other famous personalities in Lviv, such as LMR deputies Petro Adamik and Andrian Gutnyk. It is believed that “Syvy” is a true partner of Kozlovsky in all his business enterprises, both in the tobacco business and in the hotel and restaurant segment.
However, it is unclear who plays the main role in this partnership. Some sources hint at the presence of more influential figures, such as Yura Tsyrkul or Yura Muzikant, who is rumored to be running the group's affairs from London.
Hryhoriy Kozlovsky actively invests in the hotel and restaurant business. Today, he owns several successful enterprises in this field, including the Grand Hotel, the Svyatoslav hotel and restaurant complex in Vynnyky, the Korolivska Pivovarnya and Trali-Vali restaurants, as well as the popular cafes Pid Synou Flyazhkoy and Kabinet. He is also building a complex of five restaurants on Rynok Square, which he considers the “heart of Lviv”. He recently purchased the premises of the former Kyiv cinema.
His first step in this direction was the restaurant “Sviatoslav”, opened in 2005. Over time, this establishment turned into a large recreation complex with more than 50 hotel rooms, a summer courtyard, a bathhouse, a football field and a tennis court.
It is worth noting that while Kozlovsky's affairs were going well under the mayor of Vynnyka, Serhiy Uvarov (2002-2006), problems began when Teodor Hudziak took office. In 2009, Kozlovsky accused Hudziak of actions that hindered the development of the hotel and hinted at his desire to receive a bribe. He even threatened to do everything to put Hudziak behind bars.
Kozlowski kept his promise: Hudziak was arrested and sentenced to eight years in prison. However, an appeals court later acquitted Hudziak, and he returned to his position as mayor.
At the level of local politics, Kozlovsky's problems are behind him, but it was realized that he did not have enough space in Vynnyky. The time had come to conquer Lviv. The tobacco magnate began this process with his characteristic style, accompanying each step with high-profile scandals.
The first object was the “Grand Hotel”, which attracted the attention of many wealthy investors, starting with the Ukrainian American Martha Fedoriv and the Lviv businessman Gennady Genshaft. In 2011, the deputies of the Lviv City Council, under the guise of preparations for Euro 2012, decided to privatize the “Grand Hotel” and “Leopolis”. These auctions, in which Andriy Sadovyi also took part, ended in success for all parties.
As a result of the reconstruction of the “Grand Hotel”, its eight-story building radically changed the appearance of Kryvaya Lipa. A few years later, another eight-story building was built in the hotel courtyard, which overlooks a famous tourist thoroughfare. Public protests did not prevent the project from being completed, and now everything is almost ready for opening.
In 2013, a scandal arose around the construction of the “Royal Brewery.” The restaurant is located in the city center and caused outrage among some of the public.
If there were no problems with the house on Staroyevreyska Street, where the businessman bought all the apartments, then a completely different situation arose with the stone house on Rynok Square. Several apartments belonged to another well-known Lviv businessman, Volodymyr Krekhovetsky, who did not approve of his neighbor's activity. This led to protests from the residents of the house, who claimed that the restaurant had illegally occupied the basements, and public outrage, who accused Kozlovsky of destroying an architectural monument. The new restaurateur also angered the city council by continuing to build another building in the yard of the house on Staroyevreyska Street and by installing a summer playground on his own, citing the fact that all the new buildings were inside the yard of the house he had privatized.
The entrance to the “Royal Brewery”, located in this new building, became the object of a scandal. The protests gradually subsided, the public calmed down, and the restaurant continued its work as if nothing had happened: with a new building, an illegal summer playground and occupied basements. Hryhoriy Kozlovsky once again realized that in Lviv, everything is allowed for the energetic and impudent. Therefore, the result of a new scandal with the development of an architectural monument at Rynok Square, 36, can be predicted even now, despite all the efforts of law enforcement officers, officials and organizations to preserve monuments.
Kozlovsky likes to joke with his opponents, claiming that his work is completely legal and that he has “all the documents except a certificate from a gynecologist.” He even suggested installing a giant aquarium with seawater and sharks. The cafe is run by LLC “Uniya,” where Kozlovsky recently owned 96% of the company.
Last year, his name disappeared from the lists of owners of this company in the State Register, but his influence remained. One of the interesting cases of property acquisition in the center of Lviv is the history of the privatization of the Kyiv cinema on Shevchenko Avenue. Kozlovsky bought these premises with an area of about 836 sq. m without a competition for about 8.1 million UAH. In the process, the owners decided to review the situation and organized two court cases.
One of the cases concerned the recognition of the privatization of the facility as illegal and the cancellation of the relevant determination of the city council. The second case was about the termination of the contract of sale of a cinema. However, Kozlovskyi once again proved his skill. While the case was pending in court, he carried out an operation to change the owner of the cinema. As a result, the next day after receiving the certificate of ownership of the cinema, the company's activities were terminated, and Yevgeny Lobov became the owner. This is not the first time that Kozlovskyi has used Lobov for such deals. The previous case was with the privatization of another enterprise a year earlier.
However, according to lawyers, it is practically impossible to implement this decision, since LLC “Kinokompleks-Kyiv” is no longer the owner of the cinema premises. Kozlovsky also did not ignore the “incorrect” position of the city department of communal property. In May of the following year, a petition was registered on the website of the Lviv City Council for the dismissal of the head of the department, Inna Svystun, filed by Grigoriy Kozlovsky’s lawyer Oleksiy Reznyk, who represents his interests in court cases regarding the acquisition of communal real estate.
Kozlovsky openly stated that he initiated this petition, speaking at a meeting of the commission considering it. He sought to “sink” Inna Svystun, who is an important player in Sadovy’s team and heads the Samopomich faction in the regional council, but he did not achieve his goal.
Hryhoriy Kozlovskyi in the walls of the Lviv City Council
Hryhoriy Kozlovskyi first tried his hand at politics in 2003, becoming a deputy of the Lviv City Council. His election was associated with the sad death of Andriy Mozharovskyi, elected in Vynnyky. Kozlovskyi represented the “Party of Regions”, but did not particularly stand out in the work of the City Council during the Bunyak era. Since then, he has participated in elections under different party banners, not missing any, but not always successful ones. In 2015, he managed to become a deputy of the Lviv City Council, representing another political force.
Kozlovsky became a deputy as a member of the Petro Poroshenko Bloc “Solidarity”. His choice of political party was more pragmatic than committed to certain ideals, which is typical of most businessmen. This time in the city council, Kozlovsky attracts attention not only with his activity, but also with his outrageousness. , as well as with strict armed guards from “Titan”, who constantly accompany him.
Attitudes toward him range from respect to contempt. His candidacy was even considered for the position of council secretary, but he caused discontent among some deputies due to his lack of diplomacy and excessive emotionality in his statements, especially towards the mayor of Lviv and his faction.
Kozlovsky often goes beyond politeness in communicating with opponents, sometimes even using obscene language and threats. He expresses his thoughts frankly and without filtering, which can cause irritation and misunderstanding.
Regarding his political ambitions, Kozlovsky speaks with restraint, emphasizing that he once dreamed of becoming a people's deputy, but now he does not want to become like the current deputies of the Verkhovna Rada.
Nowadays, Hryhoriy Kozlovsky and his native Vynnyky live well. The troubles with Mayor Gudziak are long gone, and after Serhiy Uvarov completed his second term as mayor, his place was taken by his longtime business ally Volodymyr Kvurt. Now protection in his hometown is reliably provided. Kozlovsky continues to control the cigarette business and develop the “Sviatoslav” project.
The greatest interest among locals is the success of the local football team Rukh, in which Kozlovsky’s son plays. This club, which was once an amateur, is now confidently advancing to the second division of Ukrainian football. However, Kozlovsky adds a touch of shocking to football. In September, the Football Federation of Ukraine banned the president of Rukh from attending the team’s matches for a year after his aggressive visit to the referee’s room during a lost Ukrainian Cup match.
Kozlovsky expressed his opinion on the situation in his own style: “If the federation cannot control this black uniform, the people will take matters into their own hands and put them in their place.” He is also no stranger to “show-offs.” Former national team stars such as Oleksandr Aliyev and Maksym Shatskykh have already played in the second league of “Rukh”, and there were rumors about the possible arrival of Artem Milevsky.
Kozlovsky himself has a penchant for “showing off.” For example, he likes to show off a jacket that, according to him, cost several tens of thousands of euros. For his birthday, he invited legendary musician Thomas Anders from the duo “Modern Talking” to “Sviatoslav.”.
What today?
The Vynnyky tobacco factory demands that the State Bureau of Investigation and the UCP deal with the arbitrariness of the BEB and protect their "white business".
A very interesting requirement, considering that it is the Vynnyky Tobacco Factory that controls 75% of the market for the production of illegal cigarettes for Duty Free.
Kozlovsky's factory is not a “white national manufacturer,” but a national disgrace that should disappear as soon as possible in post-war Ukraine.
And yes, if we demand anything from the State Bureau of Investigation and the UCP in the context of this factory, it would only be to establish the circumstances of the creation by the Vynnyky Tobacco Factory of a monopoly on cigarette smuggling into the EU.
Since the beginning of the Russian invasion, certain border control structures have, strangely, allowed tobacco smugglers to export only cigarettes from this factory, at a fee of $20 per box.
All other illegal cigarette manufacturers in Ukraine were prohibited from doing so.
Let's ask the State Bureau of Investigation and the UCP to sort out the issue, who collected $20 from the smuggling of Compliment, Lifa, and Marvel, and with whom did Kozlovsky and Svishchev agree on such a monopoly.
