Vitaly Khomutynnik
A corruption scandal is brewing in Ukraine, potentially becoming the largest since the Euromaidan revolution. A photojournalist for the Ukrainian News agency captured correspondence between MP Vitaliy Khomutynnik and Odesa Oblast Governor Ihor Palytsia, in which the latter inquires about the conditions for smuggling goods through the Odesa Customs Office (also known as the Southern Regional Customs Office). Khomutynnik tells the governor that "$10,000 is handed out to the authorities" for each vehicle. He claims that someone previously mentioned in the correspondence never even touches this money, earning $300 as a freight forwarder. The MP also explains that "law enforcement officers are in on the action," that "the main organizer is Makar's deputy, Mukhin," and that this same Mukhin "is handing out law enforcement money to everyone." Furthermore, the MP advises (or instructs) Palytsia not to interfere: "let them do what they want," Khomutynnik writes.
It's not hard to guess what and who is being discussed—especially since the people involved themselves responded to the publication of the scandalous leak. "Makar" is the deputy head of the State Fiscal Service. Anatoly MakarenkoMukhin is the director of the Department for Combating Customs Violations. Khomutynnik and Makarenko have already commented on the scandal. The deputy stated that he reported corruption at Odesa Customs to the governor, not consulted him. "I decided to report the existing problem directly to the head of the Odesa State Administration, Ihor Palytsia, asking him to stop the illegal actions. After that, we exchanged information, which was recorded by a journalist," Khomutynnik explains. Makarenko, when asked to comment on the scandal on Facebook, responded that he saw no point in commenting on such "shit." "Let the authors of this scenario comment," the chief customs official wrote. The next day, February 6, he published requests to Khomutynnik and Palytsia asking them to provide all the information they had "for an appropriate response."
CONTEXT
The Ukrainian News website, which published the scandalous correspondence, is controlled by the group of Dmytro Firtash and Serhiy Lyovochkin. Vitaliy Khomutynnik is considered to be within the sphere of influence of Ihor Kolomoisky, who is waging a media war against Firtash and Lyovochkin. Makarenko's conflict with Firtash has been ongoing since Yulia Tymoshenko's premiership, when she confiscated RosUkrEnergo's gas. Makarenko, a customs officer, carried out a Cabinet of Ministers order to clear RUE's gas through customs.
LIGABusinessInform spoke with nearly a dozen entrepreneurs working with Odessa customs to find out what's going on there and what connection Khomutynnik and Makarenko have to it.
Dear law
Businessmen and officials interviewed by LIGABusinessInform described the situation at the Odesa and other customs offices more or less identically. During Yanukovych's rule, a system was established whereby almost everyone had to pay bribes according to the price list. "Back then, the cost of official customs clearance was significantly raised. For example, the tariff for a truckload of flowers was set at more than $30,000, but everyone in the market knew where the guy at the Yagodyn customs office was who would do it for $15,000," says a Kyiv entrepreneur. "Don't want to go to that guy? They'll hold you back at customs until the flowers wilt. So almost everyone paid." He says that now no one is being harassed intentionally, but the two-fold difference between the official tariff and the bribe remains, making the temptation strong.
The situation is similar at the Odessa customs office. "Nobody demands anything from anyone. They only take it from those who are willing to pay," explains Oleksiy Doroshenko, managing partner of the law firm Proxima. "At the Southern customs office, you can unofficially clear a container (what was called a 'car' in correspondence) for $10,000-$15,000. But legal customs clearance will cost around $40,000."
A recently retired high-ranking customs official admits that they have failed to significantly reduce the number of businessmen trying to cut customs fees (he calls them "barigi"). "The barigi haven't gone away and won't go away anytime soon: it's their business. Barigi are those who don't import directly, but instead tinker with offshore companies, container weight, product classification (which affects the duty rate), and customs value. They are willing to pay customs officials, and such businessmen are the main source of income for customs," says the former official. He adds that there is another category: smugglers. "But these are for a select few, especially greedy customs officials with strong protection. We'll never know the volume of such imports. We can only guess based on the difference between consumption and official imports," he explains.
Smuggling is for the select few, the especially greedy customs officers who have a strong protection racket.
"Fuel smuggling has remained the same," says the head of a trader operating in southern Ukraine. "If someone needs to import a batch of gasoline without formalities, it's just a matter of agreement and price." VAT and excise taxes are not paid on smuggled fuel, he notes. "And that's about 10,000 hryvnias per ton (about 400,000 hryvnias per tanker – Ed.). Part of this money goes toward bribes. Moreover, the fuel is unloaded in the ports of Kiliya and Izmail (Odesa Oblast) directly into tanker trucks and sent directly to oil depots or gas stations," the top manager explains.
What is the role of the correspondence participants in the corruption scheme?
Verified personnel
The businessmen interviewed reacted with undisguised irony to Khomutynnik's explanation that he asked Palytsia to root out corruption. "The schemes Khomutynnik has put in place are working, and he's doing everything he can to retain the personnel appointed under his watch," the prominent businessman asserted. However, in most cases, the source of information about Khomutynnik's "supervision" is media articles.
Makarenko has a mixed reputation: none of the businessmen or officials LIGABusinessInform journalists spoke with accuse him of corruption, but many have concerns about his effectiveness as an anti-bribery fighter.
"Makarenko repeatedly promised to destroy all these schemes. He issued the right orders, wrote stern instructions. But the schemes have not disappeared, except that the hryvnia tariffs have increased," complains an importer from Odesa. "In meetings with us, he says one thing and does another. For example, with his blessing, a scheme to evade lustration is being implemented: the head of customs is being transferred to the position of post head, while simultaneously retaining the position of acting head of customs. Lustration will reach the post head in two years, but in the meantime, the official appointed under Yanukovych can profiteer peacefully. Makarenko doesn't know? I doubt it."
A former high-ranking customs official believes it's entirely possible that oligarchic groups are exploiting the scandal to replace the relatively independent Makarenko with a more loyal customs chief. "I don't rule out the possibility that they (Firtash's group and Kolomoisky's group – Ed.) will work together to sink the submariner (Makarenko is a captain of the first rank, who served on nuclear submarines – Ed.). But to cover it up, they'll talk about Mukhin. And Makarenko brought Mukhin in this summer," the former official explains.
Source: https://od-news.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=43701&Itemid=1
Makarenko and Mukhin are considered close to MP Kozhemyakin. The future parliamentarian studied with Anatoliy Makarenko at the Kyiv Military-Political Academy. Mukhin served as Kozhemyakin's subordinate for a long time in the SBU. He then served as deputy head of the tax police to Vladislav Bukharev, now a member of parliament and a close associate of Kozhemyakin.
It is noteworthy that at one time Vladislav Bukharev had quite a good relationship with Khomutynnik.
As for the text message captured by the reporter, it looks like someone has decided to take over Odessa customs—it's the only one living comfortably in Odessa right now.
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