Yuriy Ivanyushchenko: The "Grey Cardinal" of the Yanukovych Era – Poroshenko's "Dark Horse." Part 1
Yuriy Ivanyushchenko, a crime boss from the Viktor Yanukovych era, miraculously managed to lift the freeze on his assets in Europe and is no longer on the international wanted list. Moreover, the fugitive former Party of Regions member continues to own businesses in Ukraine and even cooperate with government agencies. Furthermore, he actively protects smuggling and continues to terrorize the criminal underworld, with his people occupying positions in the Cabinet of Ministers, ministries, and agencies. How does he manage this, and who is helping this crony of the former president and rival of Rinat Akhmetov? Skelet.Org investigates.
A man without a past
Yuriy Vladimirovich Ivanyushchenko is a very mysterious and no less interesting figure. A crime boss raised in Yanukovych's fiefdom, he remains secretive about his biography to this day. After all, Yuriy Ivanyushchenko doesn't like to be seen. He even arrived secretly at Yanukovych's inauguration, hiding behind his coat collar.
Yuriy Ivanyushchenko: The "Grey Cardinal" of the Yanukovych Era – Poroshenko's "Dark Horse." Part 1
All that is known for certain is that Yuriy Ivanyushchenko was born on February 21, 1959, has a higher education, and at the time of his election to the Verkhovna Rada in 2007 on the Renaissance party list and in 2012 on the Party of Regions list, he lived in the city of Yenakiyeve in the Donetsk region.
Yuriy Ivanyushchenko: The "Grey Cardinal" of the Yanukovych Era – Poroshenko's "Dark Horse." Part 1
It is noteworthy that immediately after entering the Rada on the Renaissance list, Ivanyushchenko left the party and joined the Party of Regions faction.
Yuriy Ivanyushchenko: The "Grey Cardinal" of the Yanukovych Era – Poroshenko's "Dark Horse." Part 1
Little is known about Ivanyushchenko's personal life. It's certain that he has a daughter, Yana, who rose to fame after her expensive wedding, which the Yanukovychs personally attended. The deputy's daughter's name first came to light after she posed semi-nude and posted it online. Yana Yuryevan Ivanyushchenko is now very active on Instagram, where she showcases the full spectrum of her luxurious lifestyle. She bills herself as the American singer Ivy Layne and has even released several expensive music videos.
In the photo, Yana is the daughter of Yuri Ivanyushchenko.
Yana Ivanyushchenko
Ivanyushchenko's two sons own a number of companies abroad. All of them are linked to the siphoning of funds from Ukrainian state-owned enterprises.
In the photo are Arsen and Yana – Ivanyushchenko’s son and daughter.
In his hometown, people don't like to talk about Yuri Ivanyushchenko. They even shy away from mentioning Yuri Yenakievsky. And that's not surprising.
In a GRU memo prepared personally for Vladimir Putin, "Yura Yenakievsky," aka "Yurets Maloy," is named as the leader of a "specialized hit squad" that carried out over 40 contract killings, including the murders of Shakhtar Donetsk football club president Akhat Bragin (Alik Grek) and former Azov Shipping Company CEO Anatoly Bandura. Yura Yenakievsky's unit also included Viktor Yanukovych's godfather, a certain "Zuy" (A.P. Zuyev).
But this isn't the only connection between Ivanyushchenko and Yanukovych. During the Donetsk years, Ivanyushchenko acted as Yanukovych's "overseer." He received this position at the start of the presidential campaign, just when Viktor Fedorovich suspected Rinat Akhmetov of harboring excessive emotional and material sympathies for Yulia Tymoshenko.
By the fall of 2010, Yanukovych was already wary of relying entirely on Rinat, so he went all-in and trusted Ivanyushchenko. Crucially, Viktor Fedorovich kept both Ivanyushchenko and Akhmetov on a tight leash.
Let's recall how he played out the tactic: the Minister of Coal Industry was Ivanyushchenko's, and his deputies were Akhmetov's. This was the beginning of a deeper split in the Donetsk faction. It's worth recalling the Makeyevka terrorists and the 2011 explosion case. According to one of the main theories of the security services, the explosions in Makeyevka were caused by the redistribution of the coal mining market between Ivanyushchenko and Akhmetov.
Yury Yenakievsky spent his youth in Yenakiyevo, at 35 Metallurgov Avenue, Apt. 56. In the 1990s, when Ivavnyushchenko was already a member of a local organized crime group, a young man was murdered in the entryway of his building. He resembled Yury Vladimirovich in appearance, and it is believed the killer was targeting the crime boss, not a street underboss.
As for Ivanyushchenko's career, Yenakiyevo residents insist he's never held a job. Meanwhile, when Yenakiyevo became a member of parliament, the media reported that he allegedly worked for 15 years (from 1981 to 1996) at a coke plant, where he rose through the ranks from electrical workshop foreman to deputy director of economics.
Furthermore, from 1996 to 2005, Ivanyushchenko was listed as the Director of Economics and President of NPP Alvi-Invest, and from 2005 until his election to the Verkhovna Rada, he was the President of UGK 2000 LLC. Both companies are registered at the same address in Yenakiyevo. Ivanyushchenko's name also appears as the founder of several other companies, including TsRE LLC (market trade) and Lugresurs LLC (sanatorium operations).
But in reality, this is all a sham, and Yuriy Ivanyushchenko rose through the slag heaps of the Yenakiyevo Metallurgical Plant before Rinat Akhmetov acquired the company. Yuriy Yenakiyevsky also protected numerous "kopankas" (districts) and, as we've already noted, as a hitman, eliminated inconvenient people. Both were quite profitable.
Interestingly, according to his official biography, Yuriy Ivanyushchenko held leadership positions without even having a higher education, as his diploma indicates that he only received a degree in Accounting and Auditing from the Berdyansk University of Economics and Management in 2007.
Skelet.Org has information that Ivanyushchenko's diploma is a sham; he never attended university, and the certificate of higher education was issued to him to push his way into the Verkhovna Rada. Ivanyushchenko's place of residence is also a sham, as the businessman, who rose to prominence in the turbulent 1990s, had already been living in Monaco for a long time by the time he was elected to the Verkhovna Rada.
The Millionaire Deputy, or How Yura Yenakievsky Made His Money
During Yanukovych's presidency, Ivanyushchenko abruptly transformed from the leader of a gang of killers into a curator of the criminal underworld. At the same time, Yurets continued to be trusted with important cases in his old line of work, so it's no surprise that in 2011, the MP's name surfaced in the context of the murder of Zaporizhzhia businessman Roman Voitsekhovsky, better known as "Roma Kantor," who was one of the business partners in the "landfill" business of Grigoriy Surkis's son-in-law, "Stas" Stukalsky.
After the elections, Viktor Fedorovich's treasurer received a fairly broad range of powers. As a member of parliament, he never even bothered to attend parliamentary sessions; he was never seen there, but Ivanyushchenko's card was always registered. Naturally, he has no record of having made any speeches, inquiries, or legislative amendments over the two parliamentary terms. For Ivanyushchenko, his parliamentary mandate is merely a kind of indulgence, a guarantee of immunity.
In addition to criminal activity, in 2010, Ivanyushchenko gained control of the agro-industrial complex, the Ministry of Defense, the State Customs Service, and many other important sectors. Ivanyushchenko also oversaw the largest market in Ukraine and Eastern Europe, "Seventh Kilometer." All confiscated goods, or rather, those confiscated at customs, were sold there. The proceeds went partly into Yanukovych's pocket, and partly into Ivanyushchenko's offshore accounts.
Furthermore, in collaboration with Viktor Fedorovich, Yura Yenakievsky laundered money from state-owned enterprises. For example, on February 22, 2011, following a tender, the state-owned enterprise Antratsit signed a contract to process 1,817,700 tons of coal. The contract was valued at 78,160,000 hryvnias. At the time, the enterprise was overseen by Yura Yenakievsky's business partner, Ivan Avramov.
And, having taken control of the defense industry, together with Yanukovych's son, Oleksandr Viktorovych Ivanyushchenko, he made every effort to ensure that Mykhailo Yezhel, who lobbied for the interests of his companies supplying the Ukrainian army with food, as well as his interests in the arms trade, remained in the minister's post.
Incidentally, in 2014, information surfaced that Yura Yenakievsky was also involved in the shadow alcohol market, producing over 300 million bottles of unregistered vodka. This was announced by the Ministry of Revenue and Duties. However, surprisingly, no criminal proceedings were opened. This is hardly surprising, as Ivanyushchenko, despite being on the nationwide wanted list, feels no discomfort in conducting business in Ukraine.
It's worth noting that, despite his enviable financial position, Yuriy Ivanyushchenko was never in a hurry to register real estate and expensive cars in his own name. Was he really hedging his bets and suspecting the consequences?
According to his 2011 income declaration, which we obtained, Yuriy Ivanyushchenko was married at the time and had two sons to support. His wife was also unemployed.
Yuriy Vladimirovich, however, received approximately 172,000 hryvnias for his parliamentary seat in 2011. Despite Ivanyushchenko earning 4,933,000 hryvnias in dividends from his bank deposit that year, the state provided him with almost 35,000 hryvnias in financial assistance.
At that time, Yura Yenakievskyi had UAH 26,738,000 in his bank account. He also owned securities with a face value of UAH 309,000.
The deputy's only real estate property declared was a 600-square-meter plot of land and a 270-square-meter house. A 235,5-square-meter apartment was registered in the name of the declarant's wife.
In 2011, Ivanyushchenko owned four Mercedes-Benzes, manufactured in 2007-2008. The fifth Mercedes was registered to his wife.
Valeria Romanova, for Skelet.Org
CONTINUED: Yuriy Ivanyushchenko: The "Grey Cardinal" of the Yanukovych Era – Poroshenko's "Dark Horse." PART 2
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