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In April 2025, the HACC chose an interim measure in the form of a UAH 1.2 million bail for Valerii Melesh, director of ACTIVE COMPANY LLC, in the "Golden Eggs" case of the Ministry of Defense.

Also, the following obligations were imposed on him:

  • appear when summoned by a detective, prosecutor, or court;

  • not leave the place of registered residence;

  • report any change in his place of residence or work;

  • refrain from communicating with other suspects and witnesses in the case;

  • surrender his passport for international travel. 

The prosecutor requested bail in the amount of UAH 1,998,000 and that he be required to wear an electronic bracelet. According to the investigation, Melesh has been the director of the supplier company since 2022 and the signatory of contracts under which food products were supplied to the Armed Forces of Ukraine at inflated prices. He was the only one with access to the company’s account management and operated the illegally acquired funds. 

The prosecutor pointed out the risk of Melesh fleeing and hiding from the investigation, influencing witnesses, and attempting to destroy evidence. For example, another defendant in the case, entrepreneur Tetiana Hlyniana, who fled abroad, instructed Melesh in a joint chat to delete all messages and destroy all documents related to the supplier companies, as a "raid (inspection) could occur".

The defense requested that a personal obligation be applied to Melesh. Regarding communication in messengers, the defense argued that it is irrelevant to the case. The defense attorney also argued that the suspect is elderly and cannot wear an electronic bracelet due to "radiation" concerns. Melesh spoke in Russian during the court proceedings.

NABU and SAPO suspect the former head of the Department of Defense for Logistical Support of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, Bohdan Khmelnytskyi, and entrepreneur Tetiana Hlyniana, who controlled the supplier companies, along with entrepreneurs Larysa Shvets and Valerii Melesh, as well as former Premium Company director Mykola Deshpetko, of embezzling more than UAH 733 million and attempting to embezzle UAH 788 million during the procurement of food for the Armed Forces of Ukraine during the war.

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