The SSU and the National Police have blocked a scheme of embezzling the state budget in the procurement of drones for the Defense Forces.

According to the investigation, the deal was organized by the director of a private company from Kyiv oblast that specializes in the production of unmanned systems.

Earlier this year, the entrepreneur won a tender for procuring 1,000 FPV drones for the AFU, held by Netishyn Town Council.

The total value of the contracts amounted to UAH 16.4 mln (USD 395,000), of which the owner of the manufacturing company stole almost a third.

To implement the scheme, the contractors installed low-quality navigation equipment on the drones: video cameras and video transmitters that did not meet the stated requirements for the technical characteristics.

In this way, the perpetrator artificially lowered the cost of manufacturing the drones and embezzled the resulting ‘difference’.

Through an audit and a special examination to check compliance with the technical requirements, the law enforcement received additional evidence of the crime.

Based on the evidence, the individual in question was served a notice of suspicion under Article 191.5 of the CCU (misappropriation of property by abuse of office, committed by a group, under martial law, on a particularly large scale).

The court is to decide on a measure of restraint. The suspect faces up to 12 years in prison with confiscation of property.

The investigation is ongoing.

The operation was carried out by the SSU Office in Khmelnytskyi region jointly with the National Police investigators under the procedural supervision of Shepetivka District Prosecutor’s Office of Khmelnytskyi region.