Suspicion Announced Against Head of Demining Team Over Fake Mine Clearance Worth UAH 6.3 Million
Under the procedural supervision of the Kyiv City Prosecutor’s Office, a notice of suspicion has been issued to the director of a Kyiv-based mine action operator company and the head of a demining team.
According to the investigation, they allegedly misappropriated budget funds and falsified documents by simulating humanitarian demining operations on agricultural land in the Kherson region. The total damage is estimated at UAH 6.3 million.
This was reported by the Kyiv City Prosecutor’s Office.
During the pre-trial investigation, it was established that a group of individuals created several affiliated companies that systematically participated in tenders for demining agricultural land.
The Kyiv-based company that won the tenders, after signing agreements with the Humanitarian Demining Center, allegedly simulated demining operations and entered knowingly false information into work completion reports regarding the size of cleared areas in the Kherson region.
In reality, no demining work was carried out, as these areas had already been cleared in 2023–2024. Moreover, the land had long been used for agricultural purposes.
To create the appearance of completed work, the suspects reportedly dug up soil and planted objects resembling ammunition, presenting them as explosive hazards allegedly discovered during inspections.
As a result, the mine action operator unlawfully received UAH 6.3 million for fictitious demining work.
Funding for humanitarian demining measures was provided under a state compensation program, as well as within the framework of the EU agreement under the Ukraine Facility instrument.
The actions of the suspects have been classified under the following articles of the Criminal Code of Ukraine:
Part 5 of Article 191 — misappropriation of property in especially large amounts
Part 2 of Article 28 — commission of a crime by a group of persons by prior conspiracy
Part 2 of Article 366 — official forgery
It is noted that indictments have already been submitted to court against farmers whose land was fictitiously “demined.” They provided incriminating testimony against the suspects.
