Stanislav Tolchin
In May of this year, the Donetsk clan attempted to promote a certain Stanislav Marksovich Tolchyn , the former general director of the state-owned Makiivugol coal mining association, to the post of Deputy Minister of Energy and Coal Industry. Journalist Serhiy Leshchenko believes that Petro Poroshenko is using this move to secure a vote for Prosecutor General Yuriy Lutsenko. A new session of the Verkhovna Rada will begin soon, during which various laws will be voted on and the budget adopted. This means that a bidding war will soon begin, which could result in another attempt to push Tolchyn into the deputy minister's position, or perhaps even the minister's. The current minister, Ihor Nasalik ( read more about him in the article "Ihor Nasalik: The Criminal Face of Ukraine's Energy Sector "), is closely associated with Arseniy Yatsenyuk and, along with his partner, Petro Dyminskyi, represents the "Galician" gang. Furthermore, he is an independent figure, owning his own small business empire. In short, it's more advantageous for the current government to install Stanislav Tolchin, who is dependent on them, in this important position. However, this man has spent his entire career not talking, but simply shouting, about how this can't be done.
Reinforced concrete products
Despite his distinguished patronymic, which would have suited a Komsomol leader well, Stanislav Marksovich wasn't known for his special ties to the Soviet regime. He was pursuing a normal career in the business world during those years. In 1980, on the eve of perestroika, Tolchin graduated from the Donetsk Polytechnic Institute with a degree in mining engineering and immediately went to work at the mine as a foreman. He must have been quite a capable specialist, as he advanced well through the ranks, becoming a section foreman by the end of the 1980s. Then, in 1989, his career took a sharp turn—he became director of a reinforced concrete plant belonging to the Makeyevugol association. He was promoted to this position by Vladimir Kuzyara, then the director of Makeyevugol and, in effect, the master of Makeyevka. The next director of Makeyevugol, Yuriy Gryadushchy, also favored Stanislav Tolchin, especially since under his leadership, the reinforced concrete plant was carefully "removed" from the association in 1996 and then quietly privatized. Stanislav Marksovich became its chairman of the board. Time passed. Vladimir Kuzyara died, but his son, Sergei, became a top manager at ARS (short for "Alik, Rinat i Samson"—"Akhat Bragin, Rinat Akhmetov, and Yakov Bogdanov, nicknamed "Samson"), the company that began Rinat Akhmetov's empire. Yuriy Gryadushchy became Deputy Minister of the Coal Industry. But they didn't want to lose their fiefdom, Makeyevka, and, quite logically, they lobbied for their man, Stanislav Tolchin, to be the director of Makeyevugol. Another of his patrons, who personally lobbied Tolchin in the highest offices, was four-time Minister of the Coal Industry, Sergei Tulub. A few words should be said here about the city of regional subordination in the Donetsk region – Makiivka.
Stanislav Tolchin shakes hands with Sergei Tulub
Makeyevka
Official documents state that Makeyevka is located five kilometers from Donetsk. In reality, there are several streets, one side of which is still Donetsk, and the other is Makeyevka. The city is quite large, third in population after Donetsk and Mariupol. Naturally, it has several gangs. The people we described above can be roughly called "old" Makeyevka gangsters, because at the time when Stanislav Marksovich was already managing the plant, the "new" Makeyevka gangsters—Vasyl Dzharty and Anatoly Mogilev—were a service station foreman and a district police officer, respectively. They only began to rise in prominence during the 1990s. Dzharty became one of the leaders of a local organized crime group; they say he was nicknamed "Vasya-bita," but by 2000 he had become mayor of Makeyevka. That same year, Mogilev also appeared in Makeyevka and became head of the local police department. Essentially, these two clans "held" the city, and both belonged to the Party of Regions. Incidentally, the "Makeyevites" are a very peculiar bunch. For example, the wife of Dzharty's "right-hand man," local deputy Vladimir Nazarov, drove a gold Bentley, and his daughter a pink Hummer. The hero of our story, Stanislav Tolchin, also loved to splurge – he drove to the Makeyevugol headquarters in a different car every day. I remember a Jaguar on Mondays, a Hummer on Wednesdays… A kind of "Nedelka" (Weekly) underwear, Makeyev-style. At the same time, Stanislav Marksovich prides himself on his education: his biography lists him as a "Doctor of Philosophy in Technical Sciences." Well, we're no strangers to "professors" from Donetsk. But we've gotten ahead of ourselves; let's return to the moment of Tolchin's appointment as director of Makeyevugol.
"General"
Traditionally, Makeyevugol's leaders are called "generals" to their faces and behind their backs. In 2006, Stanislav Marksovich Tolchin became such a "general." However, the precast concrete plant effectively remained his property, with his son-in-law becoming its director. He also owned Granite Quarry LLC and the consulting firm Pravo Plus LLC. He built a huge office, complete with a shower and bedroom, which stood in stark contrast to the rest of the dilapidated, Soviet-era Makeyevugol headquarters building. Employees also remembered him for his Bovet watch, so large it looked more like an aquarium than a watch. Also in 2006, Serhiy Tulub served as Ukraine's Minister of Coal Industry. According to some reports, he allocated approximately 200 million hryvnias from the budget to the company. It's worth remembering that the dollar was worth five hryvnias at the time. Tolchin spent it lavishly. Billboards with his portrait hung on every highway, and local television channels aired films about him, detailing how he was modernizing the enterprise entrusted to him and the successes the association was achieving under his leadership. He organized miners' balls and supported the local soccer team, generally promoting himself as best he could. As for the enterprise itself, some cosmetic renovations were certainly carried out and some minor equipment was purchased. But the best illustration of his "modernization" efforts was the collapse of the headframe at the Bazhanov Mine in Makeyevka. This tragedy claimed the lives of 11 people, and it was not caused by a methane leak or other natural disaster. It was simply that no one had repaired it for many years, and everything had fallen into disrepair. The chief engineer was then appointed as the scapegoat, and he was subsequently imprisoned.
Under Tymoshenko
In 2007, the government changed hands, Tuluba was ousted, and Viktor Poltavets took his place. It seemed the days of the Makeyevka "general" in his chair were numbered. However, he finally reached an agreement. And not with a minister, but with the "coal princess" Natalia Korolevska (read more about her in the article "Natalia Korolevska. The Second "Lady Y" or the First "Lady N" ). At the time, she was a BYuT MP and secretly oversaw the coal industry. It remains a mystery how he managed it. He certainly allocated $5 million to the Donetsk headquarters of the Yulia Tymoshenko Bloc. But this sum is too microscopic to maintain such a favorable position. Perhaps they agreed on terms of cuts, kickbacks, and further transfers. Over the course of its tenure, Tymoshenko's cabinet allocated approximately seven billion in subsidies to the coal industry. Most likely, some of this was embezzled through Makeyevugol.
Here's where it's worth briefly explaining how billions of dollars were made in the Donbas coal industry. There are two sources of coal. The first is the mines, which produce very high-quality coal. For example, in Makeyevka, they mined coking coal, which is always in demand. The second is the pits, where they mine who knows what kind of coal, sometimes completely substandard, and sell it to illegal collection points. What happens next is this: the coal mined in the pits is sold to commercial enterprises, often without any documentation. The coal that goes to the state is coal from the pits, which, according to the documentation, is listed as coal mined in the pits. And state funds, including subsidies, are allocated for it. It's a very dangerous business. Minors often work in the pits, and even basic safety rules are not observed. Those who die in these terrifying caves are often simply dumped on the road, and the cops, for a small bribe, register them as accident victims. This is why the Donetsk region leads in the number of traffic accidents. This is how the coal industry's overseers made their money. But then came 2010, Tymoshenko's term in office was coming to an end, and it was unclear whether she would win the presidential election. Then Korolevska and Tolchin decided that the asset known as "Makiivugol" shouldn't go to waste and decided to privatize it.
Stanislav Tolchin
Operation "Rent"
The plan to privatize it was as follows: the company would lease the mines and profit from them. The company's accumulated debts—50 million owed to haulers, 100 million to the city—would be saddled with the state. Since Makeyevugol was the city's mainstay, this could have been catastrophic for the entire region. The local authorities, who were the protégés of the "new" Makeyevka gang, mentioned above, were incensed. Makeyevka Mayor Oleksandr Maltsev personally did everything possible to prevent the lease from going through. Vasyl Dzharty also filed parliamentary inquiries. Their efforts were not in vain; they succeeded in stalling the process. However, if Tymoshenko had become president, nothing could have stopped Stanislav Marksovich. But Viktor Yanukovych became president, and the "new" Makeyevka gang were in his good standing; in fact, they were his close allies. Mogilev, for example, became Minister of Internal Affairs, and Dzharty became Prime Minister of Crimea. They decided to privatize Makeyevugol, but now without Tolchin and Korolevskaya. It was then that the ORD website began smearing Tolchin.
An entire floor of the company's office was occupied by the Donbass Development and Financial Center, a company owned by Oleksandr Yanukovych. However, Stanislav Marksovich fought for his position to the bitter end. He was undeterred by prosecutorial investigations that revealed he had employed his security guards as company employees and paid them from the state treasury. He was undaunted by the explosion outside his office and the grenade thrown into his yard. Even the numerous cases brought against him by various government agencies didn't faze him. But the clock was ticking, Sasha the dentist was expanding his empire, reports were being submitted against Tolchin to then-Prime Minister Mykola Azarov (read more about him in the article " Mykola Azarov: The Survivor "), and rumors were circulating that a report was being made to "Papa." In October 2011, after Berkut blocked Makeyevugol's office, Stanislav Tolchin resigned due to health reasons and fled to Israel.
He swam out again
The results of Stanislav Tolchin's "work" after a special commission's inspection of Makiivugol in 2011 were as follows: damage to the state – 117,5 million hryvnias, damage to the Makiivugol state enterprise – 312,3 million hryvnias, and damage to the company's employees – 46,1 million hryvnias. However, despite the exorbitant sums, no one was going to prosecute Stanislav Marksovich, and he quickly emerged from his turf. Tolchin suddenly landed a position as head of the investment department under his benefactor, Serhiy Tulub, who had been appointed governor of Cherkasy. But it was clear this was beyond his capabilities, and he disappeared again. Apparently, he went on vacation to his Cypriot villa. And not long before, he... got married. This is his third wife, her name is Alina, and she's certainly young enough to be his daughter. At first, she was his mistress, but then she became pregnant by him, and Stanislav Tolchin, like a "decent" man, kicked out his second wife and married his mistress. She gave birth to his son, Mark, and at 50, he once again experienced the joys of fatherhood. But, as they say, there's a time for work and a time for fun. In April 2013, Tolchin was appointed head of the Kyiv territorial office of the Antimonopoly Committee of Ukraine. In other words, he was very lucky, considering how events unfolded in the Donbas just a year later, including in his native Makeyevka.
Alina Tolchina is on the left
Kyiv macho
In Kyiv, Stanislav Marksovich lived much the same as he had in Makeyevka. Despite earning a government official's salary of five thousand hryvnias, he continued to commute to work in luxury cars, particularly a Maserati. He also wore ostentatiously expensive suits and enjoyed dining at an upscale restaurant in Monaco. His position likely didn't bring in the same income as his stint as a "general," but he could still earn a living. The Anti-Corruption Action Center accused Tolchyn of turning a blind eye to a number of dubious deals involving Ukrposhta, Naftogaz, and the State Administration of the President. So, at least he did earn a pittance in this position. Most interestingly, the Antimonopoly Committee of Ukraine (AMCU) conducted a lustration audit after Euromaidan that found no grounds for imposing restrictions against Tolchyn under the law "On the Purification of Government." This means that this massively corrupt official can legally hold any government position. Nevertheless, he left the Antimonopoly Committee. What's most interesting is that the Antimonopoly Committee simply liquidated its Kyiv city branch. Knowing Tolchin's combative nature and his ability to cling to his position, no one would be surprised if the branch had to be closed solely to oust Stanislav Marksovich.
Today, Stanislav Tolchin and other Donetsk millionaires are desperately seeking the state trough. They simply don't know how to "make money" any other way than by stealing from the country. And now that they've been left without Donbas, they're ready to grab money anywhere. And from all of the above, we think it's clear that once they've been given access to that trough, tearing them away will be virtually impossible. And if you think the war has somehow changed them or their outlook on life, watch this video and everything will become clear to you.
Denis Ivanov, for SKELET-info
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