The National Anti-Corruption Bureau of Ukraine (NABU) and the Specialised Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office (SAPO) have completed their pre-trial investigation into the alleged misappropriation of over 241 million hryvnias allocated for the purchase of medical equipment for the National Cancer Institute. The case files have been disclosed to the defence team representing the six suspects — three officials from the National Cancer Institute and three representatives of private companies, one of whom, according to the investigation, is the organiser of the scheme.
Briefly about the main points
- The investigation has been completed and the case files have been handed over to the defence.
- The amount of the alleged misappropriation has been revised to over 241 million hryvnias.
- Six people remain under suspicion.
- A separate charge has been brought in connection with an attempted theft of 16.9 million hryvnias.
- Once the defence has had an opportunity to review the case, the prosecutor may refer the indictment to the court.
The amount of the probable damage was determined following expert assessments
Pros. data During further investigative work and additional expert analyses, law enforcement officers from NABU established that those involved in the alleged scheme had misappropriated over 241 million hryvnias. In June 2025, the agency had reported a sum of over 231 million hryvnias, and has now revised this figure to over 241 million hryvnias.
This concerns procurements for 2021–2022 funded from the general fund of the state budget as part of a project to establish a modern clinical facility for the treatment of cancer at the National Research Institute.
The investigation’s version of the procurement process
Investigators believe that the de facto head of a group of medical equipment suppliers set up a criminal organisation and recruited representatives of companies under his control, as well as officials from the National Institute of Research (NIR), into it. According to the NABU and the SAP, the scheme involved ensuring that these companies secured a non-competitive victory in public procurement tenders.
Law enforcement officials claim that, to this end, they carried out a superficial analysis of the market, monitored the procurement process and created conditions to ensure that bids from other participants were rejected. According to the investigation, the cost of certain items of equipment was in some cases artificially inflated by three or four times: affiliated foreign companies were brought into the supply chains and the scope of the equipment was altered.
The NABU states that it used evidence obtained through international cooperation with law enforcement agencies in 14 countries.
The latest development concerns funding for the COVID isolation centre
Separately, detectives and prosecutors uncovered an unresolved case which, according to their account, was investigated in late 2021. It concerned 16.9 million hryvnias from a special fund earmarked for medical equipment for a temporary off-site infectious diseases isolation unit for patients with COVID-19 at the Research Institute.
According to the investigation, the plan was not carried through to completion for reasons beyond the control of those involved. This sum relates to the alleged attempted offence and is not included in the more than 241 million hryvnias which the investigation considers to be funds that were likely misappropriated.
What will happen once the case files are disclosed?
Six individuals have been informed of changes to the charges previously brought against them and of a new charge. They are accused of forming and participating in a criminal organisation, misappropriation of property on a particularly large scale, and attempting such misappropriation.
The disclosure of case files marks the conclusion of the pre-trial investigation and grants the defence access to them. After reviewing the case file, the prosecutor may decide whether to refer the indictment to the court. This procedural decision is not a conviction: in accordance with the Constitution, individuals are presumed innocent until their guilt is proven by a court conviction.
