Experts at the Kyiv Institute of Forensic Expertise are suspected of fabricating false findings
The National Anti-Corruption Bureau of Ukraine (NABU) and the Specialized Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office (SAPO) have notified forensic experts at the Kyiv Research Institute of Forensic Expertise of the Ministry of Justice of Ukraine that they are under investigation. According to the investigation, they prepared knowingly false conclusions regarding the value of luxury real estate purchased by the wife of a high-ranking official of the Security Service of Ukraine.
In December 2023, the official’s wife purchased an apartment for 21.6 million hryvnias. At the same time, according to the investigation, its value was intentionally reduced to 12.8 million hryvnias in the purchase agreement.
In April 2024, a lawyer acting on behalf of the couple initiated a real estate appraisal and construction expert examination at the KNDIISE. As early as May, a commission of experts issued a report concluding that the market value of this apartment was 12.3 million hryvnias—that is, 9.3 million hryvnias lower than its actual value. To arrive at this result, the experts deliberately used irrelevant real estate properties for comparison. Subsequently, this document was used by the defense as evidence before the National Agency for Corruption Prevention (NAZK), the National Anti-Corruption Bureau of Ukraine (NABU), and in court.
That same month, NABU detectives, while investigating the criminal case regarding the purchase of the apartment, ordered a commission-based expert examination, which they withdrew on November 11, 2024, requesting that the materials be returned without the examination being completed.
However, the experts ignored the investigation’s request and continued their analysis. They agreed to limit the value of comparable properties to no more than $2,500–$2,600 per square meter (instead of the market rate of $3,000) and deliberately selected the cheapest offers starting at $1,550, while ignoring other available comparables.
In early December 2024, the experts signed the report but dated it November 8, 2024 (that is, before it was withdrawn by the NABU detective). It is telling that the detectives received a copy of the report not from the KNDIISE, but from the attorney of the suspected high-ranking official.
It should be noted that such manipulation of evidence would have been impossible had an expert institution been operating under NABU. The Bureau’s leadership has been emphasizing the critical need to establish an independent expert institution for several years now. This would eliminate corruption risks, prevent external pressure on experts, and significantly improve the effectiveness of pre-trial investigations in high-level corruption cases.
This was reported by NABU.
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