Konstantin Kulik
As experience shows, some fight for their country, while others get rich off the war. Military prosecutor of the ATO forces, Konstantin Gennadievich Kulik, is a shining example of the corrupt, clannish system that has permeated all of Ukraine. This "hereditary prosecutor," thanks to his connections, opened every door to career advancement and amassed a considerable fortune. Kulik's story is about how to deceive a country and emerge victorious.
From nowhere to military prosecutor
Finding common biographical facts (birth, education, marriage, and divorce) about Konstantin Gennadievich proved very difficult. It seems he was born in August 2015, after taking charge of the newly established military prosecutor's office in the ATO zone. As a reminder, the military prosecutor's office previously consisted of three regional military prosecutor's offices—Western, Central, and Southern—and the military prosecutor's office in the ATO zone became the fourth.
He owes his position to the former Prosecutor General of Ukraine Viktor Shokin (Read more about it in the article BViktor Shokin. The prosecutor "on vacation"), who signed the order establishing a military prosecutor's office in the ATO zone, and Ukraine's Chief Military Prosecutor, Anatoliy Matios. Tolik "Thermal Imager" (Matios' nickname after the assassination attempt on Viktor Shokin, when he claimed a sniper fired at the Prosecutor General's office with a thermal imager), in his usual exaggerated style, called Kulik a highly professional military officer. He also added that Konstantin Gennadievich spent a year in the ATO zone as the head of the military prosecutor's office. It's unclear what merits earned him this position. After all, Kulik has no connection to military service; he's never served anywhere. Moreover, before all this rigmarole with military positions, our hero sat in the prosecutor's chair overseeing law enforcement in the transport sector at the Kyiv Oblast Prosecutor's Office, and even earlier, in Mykolaiv Oblast. And the most interesting detail: as soon as Matios received his appointment, Konstantin Gennadievich became a "Colonel of Justice" (usually it takes 15 years to reach this position, or even none at all). So did Vladimir Zherbitsky, Tolik the Thermal Imaging's deputy, for whom Kulik worked as a high-stakes investigator. Why such privileges and strange coincidences? It's simple: the rich kids forced their way into power.
It turns out Matios is a "family friend" of Kulik's. Konstantin Gennadievich's father and Matios's grandfather worked for the NKVD in Western Ukraine in the 50s. After the system's collapse, Kulik Sr. became prosecutor of the Kharkiv garrison. In 1995, the Prosecutor General's Office wanted to appoint him military prosecutor of the Western Region, but decided against it. His reputation wasn't great. So the Matios and Kulik families remain friends to this day, pushing "their" children into power.
Konstantin Gennadievich's career advancement wasn't hampered even by his association with Yevgeny Zhilin, a former Kharkiv police officer and current leader of the terrorist organization "Oplot." In 2000-2001, Kulik and Zhilin, then a leading operative in the Kharkiv Oblast Department for Combating Organized Crime, investigated a case of economic fraud committed by a criminal organization. At the time, the corresponding Article 255 had just been introduced into the Criminal Code of Ukraine, and the case was sent to court. A fine story about highly moral investigators. But there's another side to it. Kulik and Zhilin, as valiant "law enforcement officers" who were part of permanent investigative teams, were involved in another interesting case in the 2000s—a simple case of protecting "envelopes" for cashing out money. In Kharkiv, there was a firm called "Slony," known only to a select few for its activities related to financial fraud. Just when the tax authorities were wondering what "Slony" was up to, two men—Kulik and Zhilin—rushed to their aid. They confiscated documents, aiding the investigation, but in doing so, they blocked further investigation and tax audits. Law enforcement also worked effectively to neutralize competing firms. Fortunately, the situation was favorable, allowing them to eliminate a competitor in the cash-out business without a second thought.
The men's paths then diverged. Kulik left for Kyiv in 2004, while Zhilin remained in Kharkiv. During the Euromaidan uprising, the former friends' views and positions on the political situation became clear, leading to a major falling out. However, this didn't stop Kulik from maintaining contact with Zhilin and his family during his tenure. This is evidenced by the prosecutor driving Zhilin's father's car through the ATO zone. However, this was likely a small token of gratitude from Zhilin's family for the fact that Kostiantyn Kulik's apartment served as collateral for a 15 million hryvnia loan taken out from Finbank by Yevhen Zhilin's company, Veltorg-2013, in 2014. The loan proceeds were used to finance the titushki (titushki) during the Euromaidan uprising, but, according to the documents, simply disappeared. The issue of Kostiantyn Gennadievich's collateralized property remained unresolved, but fraudulent dealings with forged documents removed it from the collateral registry and sold it to someone else. The gist of this financial scam is as follows: the loan proceeds were cashed out through Zhilin's shell companies, the main collateral was sold using forged documents, then ransomed, a small amount was given to the titushki, and the rest was divided between Zhilin and Kulik. Evidence of this scam can be seen in the fact that at the end of May 2014, a "small" sum of $700,000 appeared in the future military prosecutor's account. He loaned it to a Khreshchatyk Bank employee, a woman named Tysovskaya. Incidentally, in 2014, Konstantin Gennadievich's apartment in Kharkiv was seized in connection with this criminal case. He tried to have it released through the courts, but to no avail.
Incidentally, NABU only became interested in the friendship between the Kulik and Zhilin families in 2016. They hadn't investigated it before.
It's worth noting that before becoming a military prosecutor, Kostyantyn Gennadievich wanted to become an anti-corruption prosecutor. He applied for the position but failed the competition. Kulik then filed three lawsuits. Why three? He simply wanted to be seen by the "right judge" who would render the "right" decision. When such a judge was found, the two remaining lawsuits were immediately withdrawn. As a result, Kulik received a ruling overturning the decision of the selection committee for administrative positions in the Anti-Corruption Prosecutor's Office. This decision cast doubt on the results of the competition and the creation of NABU itself, but the case was hushed up, although Kulik intends to continue his legal battles.
The Kulik-Matios tandem switched to their beloved military prosecutor's office. But they lost nothing by doing so, as some of their powers are perplexing even to those unfamiliar with these matters. Granted, they often handle cases unrelated to the army or the war; their main focus is corruption. But the most interesting thing is who pushed Kulik to take these actions against NABU? It turns out it was SBU head Vasyl Hrytsak, Matios's business partner, who protects anti-corruption cases. This is entirely logical, as these individuals have no interest in investigating the "diamond prosecutors." It was the military prosecutor's office, represented by Matios, who was the first to question the veracity of the uncovered facts. There was talk of closing the case, but for now, the process is ongoing.
What is Kulik doing in his swamp?
To fully clarify the situation, it's worth understanding the purpose of the military prosecutor's office in the ATO zone. Its main mission is to enforce military law in the Donetsk and Luhansk regions. The need for this office was first discussed after an incident involving the "Tornado" company of the Ministry of Internal Affairs. Some of the unit's soldiers were accused of crimes such as robbery, kidnapping, and torture. So, military prosecutors "went" to the ATO zone with the sacred mission of maintaining order. However, war is a goldmine for those who seek quick, and most importantly, illegal, profits. And Konstantin Kulik is no exception.
Interestingly, Konstantin Kulik administers law in the ATO while staying at home in Kyiv or Kharkiv with his parents. Occasionally, he goes on business trips, where, as is well known, he receives 3,000 rubles for five days.
Smuggling at checkpoints. What's the main source of income for a prosecutor in the ATO? Of course, checkpoints. While the initial stage of military operations was dominated by looting, the pass system and checkpoints allow for serious income, completely "legally." The military prosecutor's office has complete control over the movement of goods and people within the territories. Furthermore, drug and arms trafficking is thriving in Donbas. It's no secret that checkpoints charge between 50 and 150 hryvnias for the passage of a single truck carrying illegal cargo. Whether to pay attention to this nuance or turn a blind eye is entirely up to the military prosecutor's office, represented by Konstantin Gennadievich.
The Ruzhansky case. Kulik's second task was to initiate criminal cases against volunteers. The first high-profile case involved ATO fighter Sergeant Oleksandr Ruzhansky. In 2015, he was attacked in Kramatorsk by a group of separatist-minded locals with prior convictions (one of whom had appeared on the Myrotvorets website, while the other had a criminal record and was a drug user). To be fair, Ruzhansky used a Fort traumatic pistol in the brawl. After the incident, he filed a police report, but the ATO military prosecutor's office quickly withdrew the materials and classified the incident as hooliganism with the use of a weapon, under Article 296, Part 4 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine.
The case was taken over by Dmitry Aleksandrovich Zarhin, the head of the investigation for the ATO military prosecutor's office, and Konstantin Kulik oversaw the whole affair. Zarhin immediately sided with the separatists and made no secret of it. How else could one explain the fact that an ATO soldier's traumatic pistol was unexpectedly used as a "firearm" in the case? True, Ruzhansky was offered the opportunity to hush up the case, but he refused. As it turns out, Aleksandr Ruzhansky served as an investigator and assistant prosecutor for Kharkiv's Moskovsky District from 1994 to 1996. So he understands how the prosecutor's office operates and the consequences of "hush-ups." According to unconfirmed reports, investigator Zarhin is an old friend of Yevgeny Zhilin, the leader of Oplot and the leading separatist in Kharkiv. So the source of this "love" for patriots is clear.
Ruzhansky's arrest also raises many questions. His computer and phone were confiscated—at the very least, this is odd, considering he was charged with hooliganism. However, a small detail was revealed during the trial: Ruzhansky was gathering incriminating evidence against... Konstantin Kulik. And it's worth noting that he succeeded quite well. The former investigator provided information about the military prosecutor's real estate and the fraud associated with it, about fraudulent tenders involving his mother's company, and about his connection to Yevgeny Zhilin.
Sergeant Ruzhansky was given a two-month prison sentence. Interestingly, the judge at the trial was the well-known Larisa Pereverzeva. She was the one who tried those undesirable to the Yanukovych family. In 2012, Ms. Pereverzeva sentenced Donetsk activist Konstantin Lavrov to five years in prison for protesting the construction of Oleksandr Yanukovych's house. He was accused of extorting money from the director of the large construction corporation "MAKO," which belonged to Sasha the Dentist. This is a real travesty, and Lavrov's sentence is punishment for trying to pry into the affairs of the powerful.
Did the Kurchenko case sink Kulik?
Kostyantyn Gennadievich allegedly began investigating the case of young oligarch Serhiy Kurchenko in 2014, when he was still head of the transport investigative department of the Prosecutor General's Office of Ukraine. He and three other investigators managed to gather some evidence and place Kurchenko himself, Borys Timonkin, a member of the supervisory board of Brokbusinessbank, and others on wanted lists. However, part of the group fled to Russia and Crimea, making the investigation more difficult. Then, with the post of military prosecutor looming, Kulik rushed into action, allegedly even going to the Anti-Terrorist Operation (ATO). It was there that he encountered Kurchenko's group, which was attempting to organize the illegal trade of gasoline and gas in the Donetsk and Luhansk People's Republics (DPR and LPR). Thus, they were sponsoring separatists with cash, which is already considered aiding terrorism. Yevhen Fainitsky, the former head of the SBU's investigative department in the Kharkiv region and a protégé of Kurchenko, was "working" in this direction in the ATO zone. He was responsible for the operation of his shell companies and tax evasion. He was listed as the Minister of Fuel and Energy of the DPR until May 2015 (the official date of his death). Konstantin Gennadievich decided to continue the "active" investigation. However, no one noticed any significant progress.
However, over time, Kulik's influence has led to the thrashing of the current government by former Deputy Minister of Economy Oleksandr Sukhomlin, VETEK top manager Andriy Koshel—all associates of the young oligarch Kurchenko—as well as Oleksandr, the recently detained former deputy head of Naftogaz and former head of Chornomornaftogaz. Incidentally, the latter helped Kurchenko's company, Gaz Ukrainy 2020, steal 500 million hryvnias worth of gasoline from the state-owned holding company.
Just as the case against these individuals was heading to trial, the NABU filed a notice of suspicion against Kostyantyn Kulyk for illicit enrichment. It's impossible to say for sure whether this is a coincidence or a carefully planned scheme. According to NABU spokesman Maksym Hryshchuk, over the course of five years, Kostyantyn Gennadievich earned less than he spent in the previous eighteen months, including on luxury real estate in central Kyiv and expensive cars for his common-law wife and mother. Specifically, he purchased an apartment in the Diplomat Hall building on Zhylianska Street, an apartment in the building next door, a 1,2 million hryvnia Toyota Land Cruiser for his common-law wife, and a 460,000 hryvnia Toyota RAV4 for his mother. In terms of numbers, the military prosecutor's salary over five years was 1.6 million hryvnia, while in the last eighteen months, he acquired property worth more than 3 million hryvnia. Simple calculation: expenses are 30 times higher than income.
The Pechersky District Court granted permission to access property documents for Kulik and his relatives back in December 2015. However, for six months, none of the investigators took any action. Most likely, there was no authorization from above.
It wasn't until June 29, 2016, that information emerged about a search of the home of the ATO prosecutor. Following the search, Kulik was to be served with a notice of suspicion of illicit enrichment, but he locked himself in his home and didn't come out to meet investigators. A series of interrogations followed. For example, Semyon Semenchenko was summoned to the NABU (Read more about it in the article Semyon Semenchenko. Fake commander). And then a sensational statement: it turns out Semenchenko had also been collecting dirt on Kulik, but for some reason hadn't shown it before.
On July 1, 2016, NABU detectives finally located Kostiantyn Gennadievich, served him with a notice of suspicion, and placed him under 24-hour house arrest. Then the legal "football" began: on July 4, the court removed Kulik from his position as military prosecutor, but on July 13, the Kyiv Court of Appeals reinstated him.
This week, incriminating recordings of phone conversations between Konstantin Kulik and "an individual with extensive connections in law enforcement" have surfaced. The disgraced prosecutor contacts the individual identified as "Yakovich/Yakovlevich" and asks for help.
Journalist Alexander Dubinsky declassified the mysterious "Yakovich".
According to him, Kulik spoke by phone with Yevgeny Feldsherov, a freelance adviser to the former head of the Ministry of Ecology and the Ministry of Energy and Coal Industry. According to Dubinsky, Feldsherov is a shadowy "fixer."
It is unknown whether the mysterious interlocutor helped Konstantin Gennadievich, but it can be assumed that someone nevertheless intervened in this game.
However, the most important question is: who is initiating all this?
The Kurchenko case involved "young reformers." For example, former Deputy Prosecutor General Vitaly Kasko (Read more about it in the article Vitaly Kasko – a swindler, a corrupt official, a "shot-down pilot"), who headed the firm "Arzinger," which provided legal services to protect Kurchenko's interests. He was also the first to come to the young oligarch's aid when he needed to quickly withdraw his assets in 2014. And here it's worth looking beyond Kasko and examining who is playing on NABU's side. The searches at Kulik's home were initiated by NABU Deputy Head Sytnyk (Read more about it in the article ARTEM SYTNIK. THE RICH LIFE OF THE CHIEF ANTI-CORRUPTIONIST) - Gizo Uglava, who represents Mikheil Saakashvili's team of reformers. Another NABU figure involved in Kulik's case is former Deputy Prosecutor General David Sakvarelidze, also a member of the "Georgian team." It was with Sakvarelidze that Vitaly Kasko decided to create a new political party. And his patron will be none other than the Georgian governor of Odessa. An interesting note: as soon as NABU activated Kulik's case, the Prosecutor General's Office immediately dug up the dusty volumes of Kasko's "apartment" case. So, there's a clear confrontation between the two agencies and their patrons. More specifically, the story goes like this: Kulik, who is connected to Yuriy Lutsenko's people (Read more about it in the article Yuriy Lutsenko. The "Terminator" of Ukrainian Politics), digs under Kasko, who has begun his political career, this does not please Saakashvili, who oversees the NABU and the "young prosecutors" project, so Kulik is suspected, and the Prosecutor General's Office does not remain in debt and brings Kasko's case to the surface.
There's another theory behind Konstantin Kulik's unexpected pressure: FSB "revenge." It was put forward by Gennady Moskal. (more about it in the article Gennady Moskal: the many-faced foul-mouthed general Georgiy Tuka picked up the story. Allegedly, Konstantin Gennadievich was investigating a case of drug trafficking from Afghanistan to Ukraine through the war zone. This was linked to the high-profile murder of Ukrainian security forces in September 2015 near the village of Lobachevo in the Luhansk region. At that time, an anti-smuggling group in the ATO zone, led by Andriy Glushchenko ("Andrew"), was shot. The murder was professional; the perpetrators were not separatists, but most likely Ukrainian law enforcement officers. Suspicion fell on counterintelligence officers from the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) and the Main Intelligence Directorate of the Ministry of Defense, and then the "shooters" were transferred to the Luhansk regional police. Former deputy commander of the Tornado Battalion, Mykola Tsukur, even decided to name the culprits. In his opinion, the order was placed by Anatoliy Naumenko, the head of the Main Intelligence Directorate of the Luhansk region. As you can see, this is a familiar battle between groups of people in uniform for the right to “tie up” smugglers and then extort money from them.
Regarding Kulik's role in this matter: everyone knows that illegal goods are trafficked through checkpoints. So it's unlikely Kulik would want to cut off such a gold mine as drugs from Afghanistan.
The prosecutor's favorite rich women
Konstantin Kulik has two beloved women: his mother, Svetlana Kulik, and his mistress, Irina Nimets. They are both millionaires. Incidentally, they became rich relatively recently—about a year ago. Their enrichment coincided with Konstantin Gennadievich's appointment as military prosecutor. Let's take stock of the Kulik family's wealth.
Apartments.
It's worth starting with real estate, as it has two interesting stories. The Kulik family's apartments are located in the capital's Diplomat Hall on Zhylianska Street. The total area, including the extension, is approximately 500 square meters (the price per square meter in this building can reach up to $3000).
One of these apartments is registered to the military prosecutor's mother, Svetlana Kulik.
The second one was donated by a certain Givi Maksheev.
He is the former owner of the companies Zheleznodorozhpostach, Kivo, and Svong, as well as the jewelry firm Vilant, and is also a defendant in a criminal case related to abuse of power at the railways, or, more simply, the embezzlement of Ukrzaliznytsia. As a reminder, Konstantin Gennadievich worked for several years for the benefit of the transport prosecutor's office and also acted as a guarantor for crime boss Igor Butanov.
Butanov's companies, Soyuz Dortrans LLC and Soyuz Expo LLC, registered at the same address in Cherkasy, supplied goods worth 200 million hryvnias to Ukrzaliznytsia between 2008 and 2012. The companies are currently in the process of liquidation.
Kulik is also implicated in an old case of embezzlement from Ukrzaliznytsia. The case involves the transfer of 260 million hryvnias from the railway department to a certain foundation called "Artemis." According to one theory, the money was diverted in 2004 to support Viktor Yanukovych's presidential campaign. The investigator for this case was Kostiantyn Kulik, then a protégé of former Deputy Prosecutor General Vitaly Shchetkin. However, the money vanished into thin air, and the culprits were never found. Rumor has it that Kulik was investigating "privately." Only after the Donetsk gang arrived at the Prosecutor General's Office was the case hushed up, and in 2009, a certain Petoshin, the key witness involved in cashing out funds siphoned off from Ukrzaliznytsia through "Artemis," was professionally murdered.
So, let's return to our old acquaintance, Givi. He gave Kulik an apartment as a gift when he was serving in the Anti-Terrorist Operation (ATO). However, the prosecutor didn't hold onto this luxury property for long. He immediately transferred the gifted apartment to his common-law wife, Irina. Incidentally, Konstantin Gennadievich also purchased an apartment on Saperno-Slobodskaya Street and a space in Pechersk for her, where the young woman opened a sort of atelier with the modest name "By Nemez."
Cars. Last year, Iryna Nimets, a seamstress and waitress at the Yakitoriya restaurant, added a Mercedes worth between 3 and almost 9 million hryvnias to her fleet.
By the way, in 2014, Irina Nimets’ income amounted to 1,687 hryvnia per year.
The Kulik family also owns a couple of luxury cars, including a Land Rover, a brand-new Toyota RAV4, and another Mercedes. After purchasing the Toyota and Mercedes, NABU filed a lawsuit seeking access to the SUV purchase documents. Detectives discovered that the sales contract indicated the cars were purchased by bank transfer through Credit Agricole Bank. In reality, however, the money was deposited into the bank account in cash, meaning the cars were purchased with cash.
It's worth recalling the story of Yevhen Zhilin's father's car, which Konstantin Kulik drove around the ATO zone. It turns out it also belongs to Iryna Nimets. This was stated by the girl herself. According to her, she bought the car in 2009 from Vladimir Zhilin. The money for its purchase was provided by "a man who is no longer alive."
Million dollar company. In 2014, after the opening of competitive bids for public procurement, the company "Building Center Ayudar" LLC found itself at the center of a scandal. It was supposed to supply Ukrzaliznytsia with coal worth approximately 100 million hryvnias. It was very strange: a completely unknown company and such a large supply volume for an astronomical sum. The company was registered in 2011 to Svetlana Kulik from the village of Korotich in the Kharkiv region. She was unknown to the general public at the time, but everyone knew her in narrow circles, as she is Kostyantyn Kulik's mother. Since 2013, the company has been winning smaller tenders: for clearing the Lyubka Riverbed, installing pollution control and monitoring systems in Kyiv, and supplying concrete and timber to the Odesa Railway. Ultimately, it turned out that the company had contracts worth 3,15 million hryvnias.
Furthermore, in 2014, Ayudar was mentioned in reports from the State Medicines Service. The company was selling products unregistered in Ukraine under the guise of pharmaceuticals.
The company still exists. And it's likely doing well, as the war in Donbas and the coal crisis create opportunities for smuggling.
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Everyone does what they do best. Konstantin Kulik knows how to get away with it while deceiving all of Ukraine.
Arina Dmitrieva, for SKELET-info
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