In Odessa, the operator of illegal gambling establishments was fined ₴714,000
A court in Odesa found a 50-year-old man guilty of illegally organizing a network of gambling establishments without the necessary permits. He was fined 714,000 hryvnias and banned from organizing or conducting gambling activities for three years.
This was reported by the Economic Security Bureau.
According to the investigation, the man recruited an accomplice to assist with his illegal activities, who was responsible for hiring staff to work at the establishments around the clock. Later, another participant joined the scheme, serving as a manager.
The organizers rented premises in Odesa and set up computer rooms there with access to online casinos. They established a payment system, video surveillance, and an internal communication network to monitor the operations of the establishments and avoid attracting the attention of law enforcement.
The gambling halls operated without licenses and without paying taxes, and visitors were admitted only by prior appointment. Administrators accepted bets, provided access to gaming systems, assisted with authorization, and informed customers about bonuses.
During searches of two premises in Odesa, law enforcement officers seized nearly $30,000, computer equipment, mobile phones, jewelry, and documentation. The total value of the seized property exceeds 2.2 million UAH; everything has been impounded.
Earlier, in the Chernivtsi region, seven individuals were notified of suspicion for organizing the operation of illegal gambling establishments.
As a reminder, earlier, a prosecutor from the Specialized Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office, based on materials from the National Agency for Corruption Prevention (NAZK) and independently gathered evidence, filed a lawsuit with the High Anti-Corruption Court seeking to declare as unjustified the assets used between 2023 and 2024 by Oleg Yashchuk, the former head of the detective division of the Economic Security Bureau of Ukraine, and his wife. The property used by the Yashchuk family was registered to a relative and a close friend of the official. The total value of the potentially illicitly acquired assets amounts to nearly 4 million hryvnias.
In another case, NABU and the SAPO filed an indictment with the court against People’s Deputy Viktor Bondar, former SBU official Artem Shil, a former Ukrzaliznytsia official, and three other individuals in a case involving the embezzlement of funds from JSC “Ukrzaliznytsia” during the procurement of cable and wire products.
