The El'Pharm pharmacy chain is actively operating in Kyiv, which, according to an investigation by Radio Liberty's "Schemes" project, is engaged in the trade of smuggled medicines and Russian-made drugs.
This chain has two pharmacies. Both are in Kyiv: one near the train station, the other on the Left Bank. The signs on both are in Russian, which violates the language law.
“Schemes” conducted a journalistic experiment and purchased illegal medicines from “El'Pharm” pharmacies: Russian and Western, made for Russia.
Unlike unsuccessful attempts to purchase commonly available drugs at this pharmacy, the order for the illegal drug at El'Pharm was immediately confirmed. Already at the pharmacy, it turned out that the drug "Wobenzym" that the journalists received at the pharmacy was specially produced for the Russian market.
El'Pharm sells Western medicines that are permitted in Ukraine but produced for Russia both offline and online. The chain sells Russian drugs more cautiously – by prior order by phone.
“Scheme” journalists also managed to order the Russian drug “Cortexin” from this pharmacy. The manufacturing date on the package is January 2024, but the last time this Russian drug was legally imported into Ukraine was in 2017.
The Prosecutor General's Office says that the smugglers' route may run through third countries.
The El'Pharm pharmacy chain is registered to two brothers, private entrepreneurs, Eshgin, 26, and Elvin Bagirov, 29. They are citizens of Azerbaijan, but live in Kyiv.
Both are registered as second-group individual entrepreneurs, which allows each to earn up to 6 million hryvnias per year.
