Case description
On August 6, 2020, the HACC found Kostiantyn Starovoit, former director of Tsentrgaz (subsidiary of OJSC Kirovogradgaz), guilty of an attempted embezzlement of UAH 8.6 mln in favor of a private company. He was imprisoned for a term of 8 years, with confiscation of the car and a ban on holding certain positions for 3 years.
Before Starovoit committed the crime, LLC Metida, which was founded by two defendants in this case, transferred more than UAH 12 mln to the account of Tsentrgaz under the guise of prepayment for natural gas.
Subsequently, Starovoit deliberately concluded an unprofitable contract with LLC Naftogazgroup Demetra to purchase natural gas for more than UAH 9 mln. According to it, in case of non-payment or partial payment for gas, Demetra has the right not to transfer gas and to charge Tsentrgaz a penalty for each day of delay and an additional fine in the amount of 100% of the total cost of gas, which did happen.
In the natural gas market, a frequent phenomenon is when payment is made in part, and underpayment of 5-10% of the amount is not considered a reason for applying penalties.
On June 30, 2017, UAH 8.6 mln was first transferred to the account of Demetra, and then to Metida under the guise of funds according to the terms of the contract. Therefore, as a result, the latter enterprise illegally enriched itself by UAH 8.6 mln, initially transferred to Tsentrgaz as an advance payment. Tsentrgaz itself suffered damage on a particularly large scale and did not receive new gas under this contract.
Starovoit confirmed that he had concluded the agreement, since the price offered by LLC Naftogazgroup Demetra for 1,000 cubic meters was lower than that of other sellers. The official was convinced that there were no risks of paying penalties under this agreement. At the same time, the court proved that he had a connection with the owners of LLC Metida and an interest in enriching it.
The case was qualified under Art. 191, part 5 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine. Starovoit was sentenced to 8 years in prison with confiscation of a 2012 Kia Optima car and deprivation of the right to hold positions related to the performance of administrative and economic functions for 3 years.
The appellate instance upheld the verdict to Starovoit, just as the Supreme Court did after considering the cassation appeal. The National Police of Ukraine put him on the wanted list because he evaded enforcement of the sentence.
