Ukraine seizes $1.5 million worth of cryptocurrencies from former public officials

The Anti-Corruption Service of Ukraine said it had seized $1.5 million worth of crypto assets from the former head of Ukraine’s Special Communications Service, Yury Shchigol. The Anti-Corruption Bureau (NABU) announced that the seized assets include 6.9 BTC, 1.2 million USDT and 331 TRX. The former public official is under investigation for allegedly misappropriating approximately $1.8 million worth of government funds. According to NABU, Yury Shchigol and his deputy Victor Zhor were behind a criminal scheme in which a special communications service that provided communications between government agencies purchased software and services from two companies and paid exorbitant fees. The unnamed companies conspired with Shchigol and Zhor, and the government agency eventually paid 285 million hryvnia ($7.8 million). The purchased goods and services were actually purchased from another supplier abroad at a cost of only 223 million hryvnia ($6.1 million). NABU said Shchigol and Zhor pocketed the difference. Ukrainian public officials are known for their use of cryptocurrencies. In 2021, multiple civil servants reported owning 46,351 Bitcoins, worth $2.7 billion at the time. (The Block)