Accounts of firms seized in Odesa region on suspicion of laundering 300 million

In Odesa region, companies allegedly laundered more than 300 million. The money was laundered through bank accounts of companies suspected of tax evasion and financial fraud.

This is stated in the ruling of the Kyiv District Court of Odesa.

The court ordered the seizure of funds of two companies as part of criminal proceedings on a tax evasion and money laundering scheme. The investigation of the Bureau of Economic Security established that Legend Tobacco and ABK (formerly Bordo Group Trade LLC) acted as transit companies through which the proceeds of crime were accumulated and transferred.

The total amount of transfers to the accounts of these companies for the period from June to October 2025 exceeded UAH 209 million, of which more than UAH 23 million came from business entities with signs of risky activities.

The funds were then transferred to the accounts of real wholesale and retail companies, including Attica-2007, DL Solution, and Tuscany Trading. According to the STS analytical study, the company did not reflect the funds received in tax invoices and VAT declarations totaling more than UAH 311 million, which may indicate concealment of the origin of income and legalization of funds.

During the pre-trial investigation, it was established that the scheme involved company officials who organized financial transactions for tax evasion, transfer of funds to the shadow sector, cashing out and legalization of income. For this purpose, the defendants opened accounts in a number of Ukrainian banks.

The court ruled to freeze the companies' funds in bank accounts, in particular in OTP Bank, Credit Agricole Bank and Oschadbank, and prohibited them from making any expenditures other than tax payments. Banks are obliged to provide detectives of the Bureau of Economic Security with information on account balances and movements.

In September, in Odesa, the BES launched an investigation into an organized group that cashed out funds through fictitious transactions. Law enforcers identified suspicious transactions worth over UAH 230 million. The scheme involved the transfer of money to the accounts of other companies for the alleged supply of goods and services that were not actually provided.

Анна Бальчінос