Igor Geida
There's currently a spot on the map of Ukraine that no one controls. This refers to the territory of the unrecognized Donetsk and Luhansk People's Republics (DPR) and Luhansk People's Republics (LPR). It's quite easy to infiltrate through its borders into both Ukraine and Russia. This corridor is currently being increasingly used by Ukrainian officials, both those from the Yanukovych era and those who have managed to commit crimes under the new government.
Last April, Oleksandr Pivovar was appointed head of the SBU in the Kharkiv region. Along with the new head came a new team. Admittedly, it was hard to call it "new." Police Colonel Ihor Geida took over the position of head of the Internal Security Directorate. And this is far from the first time these two have worked together.
Their careers developed in parallel. Geida always wanted to work for the SBU. But after graduating from one of Kharkiv's military academies, he couldn't find any other way to get there than by becoming someone who leaked information to the security forces—or, more simply, a snitch.
As it turned out, they needed people like him there, too. At the time, Geyda was positively intoxicated with happiness, both figuratively and literally. Information about the high-profile traffic accident involving him remains shrouded in mystery. According to his fellow officers, Geyda rammed a car, injuring innocent people. He then inflicted varying degrees of bodily harm on several others. And, of course, he was never punished. True, they were planning to fire him. But even here, Geyda found a way out. He offered what he did best—informing on his own. Thus, Igor Geyda joined the SBU's Internal Security Directorate. There, Oleksandr Pivovar, the current head of the Kharkiv SBU, became his "godfather." To be precise, Pivovar became Geyda's godfather, not his "godfather." He had repeatedly bailed him out after several "screw-ups." This happened even when Geida's involvement in smuggling schemes drew the attention of the SBU's central apparatus. But the time came, and Pivovar himself was expelled from the SBU. Without his influential patron, Geida was quickly expelled from the agency as well.
However, our hero soon found a new, equally lucrative job and a new patron. Geida "settled" in the Internal Security Department of the State Tax Administration of the Zaporizhzhia Oblast. Now he loyally serves his new boss, the head of the Internal Security Department of the State Tax Service of Ukraine, Oleksandr Tulaev.
But Zaporizhia isn't a good fit for Geyda. All the schemes remain in Kharkiv. That's when the persecution of the head of the internal security department of the Kharkiv Oblast Tax Administration begins. Having received the long-awaited position, Igor Geyda continues to earn prestige and money.
In a relatively short time, thanks to his close friendship with A.S. Tulaev and A.V. Zakharchenko, who are currently wanted by Interpol, Geyda was appointed Head of Internal Security of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Ukraine in the Kharkiv region. Geyda began his career by providing protection for the illegal terrorist organization "Oplot" and the conversion centers it controlled. With close ties to gangsters in Kharkiv, Crimea, and Donetsk, and a good relationship with Yevgeny Zhilin, Geyda quickly became a key player in the international illegal arms trade.
Evgeniy Zhilin
In just a year of working under the wing of Vitaly Zakharchenko and Yevgeny Zhilin, according to the information we have, Geida earned around $250 million from arms trading alone.
These are, so to speak, "external revenue channels." Together with them, Geida establishes corrupt schemes, imposing taxes on cash-out operators, drug dealers, and prostitutes. According to the testimony of detained separatists, former Oplot members, Geida and Zhilin personally accompanied Oplot members to the Kharkiv railway station, sending them to Kyiv to carry out provocations on the Maidan.
Not limiting himself to this, our “hero” introduces a tax for the heads of district departments in Kharkov and the region, as well as the State Traffic Inspectorate.
To optimize the work of receiving bribes from businessmen and police officers, Geida employed his squire, a certain Sokolov, transferring him to serve under his wing.
A.V. Sokolov set up an "office" for his own convenience in one of Kharkov's cafes, SushiYa, on Lenin Avenue, where he collected money from those whom the boss had imposed a "tax."
At the same time, Geyda didn't bother to treat those from whom he extorted money with integrity. A striking example of his vile treatment of people and the pursuit of false results by exploiting his favored Caucasians was the case of the deputy chief of the Dzerzhinsky District Police Department in Kharkiv. Geyda personally asked the deputy chief for a spot at the market, ostensibly for an acquaintance. He contacted him. The chief of the department was then given money, thus fabricating a bribe. This is not an isolated incident. In our opinion, the Lustration Committee should speak with Igor Geyda, who held a leadership position under the previous government.
Another similar scam was perpetrated against the deputy head of the Kharkiv OVIR. Geida invited him to his office. He had no reason to distrust Geida, as he was quite adept at feigning a false friendship. Meanwhile, Geida's subordinates, internal security officers, conspired to extort a bribe from his brother.
But a revolution broke out in the country. All the hangers-on of the former regime were forced to flee the country. Geida himself "sat it out," but Tulaev fled. Admittedly, not without the help of a Kharkiv resident.
And then Geida's old patron enters the picture. Somehow, Pivovar, as previously reported, returns to the Kharkiv SBU. Geida follows him back to his old position. After hiding in the shadows for a couple of months until the rumours about his close friendship with Zakharchenko and Zhilin in Kharkiv subsided, Geida, taking advantage of the complete post-revolutionary chaos in the country, as well as the millions he had stolen, is secretly and without any publicity appointed to the position of Deputy Head of the SBU for the Kharkiv region.
Together with Pivovar, they simply shine with creativity. Many have probably seen in the media how they successfully eliminate subversive terrorist groups. Recent events in Kharkiv—the shootings at a military enlistment office, factories, and the bombing of transport routes—suggest that a well-armed and funded subversive group with long-established connections and capabilities is operating undercover in Kharkiv. However, few realize that these terrorist groups are being created by Kharkiv SBU officers Geida and Pivovar themselves.
This showiness is just the tip of the iceberg. Drug use, protection rackets for drug trafficking, prostitution, nightclubs, cash-out rackets, and illegal trade—that's how these two make a living. And they lead a very, very comfortable life. Expensive cars, country houses, restaurants, and luxurious vacations—that's what makes up the lives of these two servants of the people.
But recently, Geyda and Pivovar began to sense that their carefree existence was about to end. Their purchase of luxury real estate in Italy was proof of this. They were well aware that the SBU had taken an interest in their activities and launched an investigation. Therefore, all their schemes were temporarily shut down. A way out for Geyda and Pivovar was to flee through Russia. Especially since all the money had long since been transferred there via the DPR. But it's not easy to get to Russia these days, especially for two high-ranking officials. But there is currently territory on the map of Ukraine that is not controlled by the authorities – the Donetsk and Luhansk regions. It's there that they could disappear unnoticed.
Therefore, the purpose of this article is to warn the authorities to tighten their grip on these two individuals. There is also information that the regional prosecutor's office, which signs all the sanctions, assisted in all of Geide's schemes. Therefore, we must not allow criminals to escape punishment! We must not allow such people to control the country's security. As long as they remain "at the helm," there is no point in even talking about any reforms or positive changes!
Oleg Bely
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