In the case of the illegal privatization of the Samara-Western direction oil pipeline, there have been significant developments. The Security Service of Ukraine and the National Anti-Corruption Bureau of Ukraine have completed the investigation, which revealed an extensive evidence base and led to the announcement of suspicion against the ex-Nardeput Viktor Medvedchuk and his accomplices.
The Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) and the National Anti-Corruption Bureau of Ukraine (NABU) have completed the investigation of a large-scale case related to the illegal privatization of the state oil pipeline "Samara-Western Direction". As a result of the investigation, which was conducted under the procedural guidance of the Office of the General Prosecutor and the Kharkiv Regional Prosecutor's Office, substantial evidence was collected that confirms the criminality of the actions related to this case.
So far, the suspicion has been reported to ex-Nardeput Viktor Medvedchuk and four representatives of the former top management of Prykarpatzakhidtrans, who directly participated in the acquisition and management of the oil pipeline. The suspicion was declared under several articles of the Criminal Code of Ukraine, in particular:
- Part 3 of Art. 27, Part 3 of Art. 28, Part 3 of Art. 365-2 (abuse of authority by persons providing public services);
- Part 3 of Art. 27, Part 3 of Art. 28, Part 2 of Art. 384 (misleading the court or other authorized body);
- Part 3 of Art. 27, Part 5 of Art. 191 (appropriation of other people's property by an official abusing his official position, committed on a particularly large scale by an organized group);
- Part 3 of Art. 27, Part 3 of Art. 209 (organization of the acquisition, possession and use of funds, as a result of the commission of a socially dangerous illegal act, which preceded the legalization (laundering) of income, committed by an organized group and in a particularly large amount).
According to the case materials, the organizer of the illegal privatization scheme was ex-Nardeput Viktor Medvedchuk, who allegedly implemented his scheme since 2015 in close coordination with the then top political leadership of Ukraine and the Russian Federation. As part of the scheme, Medvedchuk involved outsiders who were given management positions at the company that allegedly privatized the oil pipeline.
After the collapse of the USSR, the oil pipeline "Samara-Western direction" remained the property of Russia. Since 2005, Ukraine has been trying to prove its right to own it, and only in 2014-2015 this right was confirmed by the Courts of Appeal and the Higher Economic Courts. However, with the support of the then top leadership of Ukraine, Medvedchuk managed to appeal this decision through the Rivne Commercial Court and formalize the sale of the oil pipeline to a Swiss company actually controlled by the participants of the scheme.
After taking possession of the oil pipeline, Medvedchuk and his accomplices ensured its operation through the Prykarpatzakhidtrans enterprise, and the profits were transferred to the accounts of affiliated foreign companies. All information is supported by evidence collected by NABU and the SBU, as well as the testimony of Viktor Medvedchuk himself, which he voluntarily provided in exchange with the Russian Federation.
Since May 2019, the pumping of diesel fuel through the pipeline was blocked in order to return it to state ownership, and law enforcement agencies checked the legality of the privatization. In January 2024, the Supreme Court of Ukraine finally recognized the Ukrainian part of the oil pipeline as state property.
