The Special Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office (SAP) has completed its pre-trial investigation into a systematic bribery scheme involving the former head of the State Border Guard Service of Ukraine (DPSU), Serhiy Deyneko. Alongside Deyneko, a border crossing department chief and another former official will stand trial. The investigation established that the suspects accepted bribes to facilitate the frictionless transport of cigarettes into the EU under the guise of diplomatic cargo.
According to NABU detectives and SAP prosecutors, the illicit scheme was organized in 2023. Businessmen set up a pipeline to smuggle cigarettes across the Ukrainian border into the European Union. To pull it off, they used vehicles registered in Austria and the Czech Republic, fitted with forged diplomatic license plates.
To bypass custom inspections by EU authorities, the organizers recruited actual diplomatic passport holders—specifically, family members of Ukrainian diplomats stationed in Europe—as passengers. Meanwhile, Ukrainian border guards ensured these vehicles cleared checkpoints on both sides of the border without any hassle.
«Documented evidence shows that between July and November 2023, the border officials received approximately €204,000 in bribes for securing the smooth passage of 68 such vehicles.»
Depending on their specific roles in the scheme, the suspects’ actions have been classified under Part 4 of Article 368 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine (acceptance of an offer, promise, or receipt of an unlawful benefit by an official on a large scale) and Article 27 of the CCU (complicity). Once the case files are disclosed to the defense, the indictment will be forwarded to court.
Concurrently, investigators exposed another high-ranking border official. The former deputy head of the Western Regional Directorate of the DPSU (who currently serves as the deputy head of the Eastern Regional Directorate) acquired assets worth over 11 million UAH between 2023 and 2024 without any verifiable source of legal income.
A portion of these funds was used to purchase a Toyota RAV4, while the remaining cash was uncovered and seized by NABU detectives during a search of his residence. His actions have been classified under Article 368-5 of the CCU (illicit enrichment).