More than UAH 5 million were demanded from exporters of the “grain corridor” every month

In Odesa, the State Bureau of Investigation exposed officials of the State Production and Consumer Service of extortion from grain traders.

Law enforcement officers have completed the investigation into the officials of the State Production and Consumer Service, who demanded money from the exporters of the “grain corridor”, the SBI reported.

At the beginning of April, employees of the SBI exposed and detained five employees of the State Production and Consumer Service in Odesa and Zaporizhzhia regions. The suspects organized a corruption scheme to extort money for issuing phytosanitary certificates.

The documents were necessary for the export of agricultural products, as well as the preparation of acts on the results of the survey, which are necessary for the export of barley and corn.

Previously, detainees received more than $160,000 per month thanks to the scheme.

Currently, two chief inspectors of the State Production and Consumer Service of Odesa region are accused of receiving an unlawful demand in a particularly large amount (Part 3 of Article 368 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine). They face up to 10 years in prison.

Earlier, USM reported that in the Mykolaiv region, the SBI exposed an official of the State Production and Consumer Service who demanded money from exporters of agricultural products.

In particular, the detainee demanded money from the exporters for the accelerated processing of veterinary documents for the export of agricultural products to the EU.