6 senior National Guard officials suspended from posts amid corruption probe

Six senior officials from the logistics division of Ukraine’s National Guard have been suspended from their posts, the Interior Ministry said on May 10, amid the launch of an internal investigation.

"Full cooperation is being provided to the investigation," the Interior Ministry wrote.

Ukrainian media outlet ZN.UA reported on May 10 that their law enforcement sources confirmed an ongoing probe by the National Anti-Corruption Bureau (NABU) into suspected embezzlement, money laundering, and bribery, under relevant articles of the Criminal Code.

Oleksandr Pivnenko, the commander of the National Guard, is suspected of receiving a bribe of up to Hr 190 million ($4.6 million) in collusion with other officials, ZN.UA reported. The payments were allegedly made in exchange for facilitating contract awards and favouring specific entrepreneurs in public procurement tenders.

The director and deputy director of the logistics department of the National Guard are also suspected of embezzlement and money laundering, ZN.UA reported.

Investigators suspect the two officials of embezzling Hr 199 million ($4.8 million) from National Guard funds. According to the probe, the officials allegedly purchased FV-series tracked armored personnel carriers at inflated prices.

Ukraine's military has seen a number of procurement scandals since the start of Russia's full-scale war.

Earlier on April 2, Ukraine's anti-corruption bodies announced charges in a corruption case involving overpriced food purchases by the Defense Ministry between 2022 and 2023.