The HACC released businessman Vitalii Zhukov from criminal liability due to the expiration of the statute of limitations in a case involving the alleged offer of an unlawful benefit to Serhii Filonenko, director of the state-owned enterprise Izyum Instrument-Making Plant.

According to the prosecution, Vitalii Zhukov and Andrii Rohoza (co-founders and business partners at Optymumspecdetal LLC) organized a scheme to evade taxes and subsequently launder the proceeds. Prosecutors also alleged that Zhukov entered into corrupt arrangements with the head of the state enterprise.

A separate episode of the proceedings concerned the alleged provision of an unlawful benefit to Filonenko.

Investigators believed that Zhukov and Filonenko reached a prior agreement under which the state enterprise would pay Optymumspecdetal under supply contracts even if some deliveries did not actually take place or the volume delivered did not match what was declared.

After the funds were received, the prosecution alleged, 68% of the amounts paid were converted into cash and handed to the plant director as an unlawful benefit, while 32% remained with the company.

One example cited was the payment of an invoice dated September 15, 2016, totaling UAH 2.67 million (including VAT). After part of the money was transferred to Optymumspecdetal’s account, the funds were allegedly routed through controlled businesses and converted into cash.

Investigators alleged that Zhukov, through an intermediary, transferred UAH 500,000 and $14,700 to Filonenko—UAH 879,000 in total. Prosecutors treated this as a bribe for ensuring payment under the contract and for facilitating the private company’s performance using Filonenko’s official position.

Zhukov’s actions were classified as offering an unlawful benefit to an official (Article 369(1) of the Criminal Code of Ukraine).

However, the HACC later closed the case against Zhukov due to the expiration of the statute of limitations. Zhukov agreed to be released on this non-exonerating ground. The alleged offense occurred in September 2016; the five-year limitation period expired in September 2021.

Overall, the investigation into Optymumspetsdetal has been ongoing since early 2019, following the exposure of a large-scale corruption scandal in the defense industry.

At the time, Bihus.info published reporting alleging that Ukrainian defense enterprises purchased spare parts for military equipment from Russia, with shipments allegedly smuggled and without proper quality control. Key figures named in that story included Optymumspecdetal owner Andrii Rohoza and his business partners Vitalii Zhukov and Ihor Hladkovskyi, the son of then–National Security and Defense Council official Oleh Hladkovskyi.

Zhukov is also the head of Vector-V Special Design Bureau, which develops ammunition for grenade launchers.

The HACC considered Filonenko’s case separately and acquitted him. The acquittal was based on the court’s finding that the prosecution’s key evidence—an electronic archive of WhatsApp messages—was inadmissible. Investigators obtained the digital copy not directly from the suspect’s phone, but from journalists who had received it from an unknown source. The court could not verify whether the extract was authentic or had been altered, and therefore found it unreliable. With no other direct evidence of corruption, and with documentary evidence confirming that deliveries had taken place, the court concluded that guilt had not been proven.