Khimprom criminal organization has corruption component, its Russian roots being investigated

The National Police of Ukraine has documented the activities of the Khimprom criminal organization, which is involved in drug trafficking and violent crimes, has a corruption component including among police officers, and has Russian roots, National Police chief Ivan Vyhivsky said at a briefing in Kyiv on Wednesday.

"The Khimprom criminal organization has been documented… This is an extensive scheme and system that has for a long time exerted criminal influence on Ukraine and on the territory of European Union countries," Vyhivsky said.

According to him, the organization is involved in several areas of criminal activity simultaneously — drug trafficking, violent crimes, call center fraud, and the organization of the large-scale U420 project for the sale of products containing synthetic cannabinoids.

Responding to a question from Interfax-Ukraine on the organization’s Russian roots and its influence beyond general criminal activity, the National Police chief noted that the police are cooperating with the SBU and other law enforcement agencies as part of the investigation.

He recalled that in 2019 the SBU carried out operations against Khimprom, after which the criminal proceedings regarding the main suspect were separated into a separate case now under the National Police’s jurisdiction.

"Regarding the Russian roots - we are also looking into this. There are some audio files; in the course of the investigation we will assess this," he stressed.

Vyhivsky also drew attention to the corruption component of the criminal organization’s activities. "You can see what financial resources are involved… Of course, there is a corruption component both among law enforcement, including our own officers, and among other actors."

Vyhivsky specified that this concerns officials and in particular members of parliament.

A video was shown at the briefing recording, among other things, conversations by the organization’s leader, as well as threats against those police officials involved in documenting Khimprom’s crimes.

As part of dozens of criminal proceedings, police officers carried out thousands of operational measures and documented the mechanism of the criminal infrastructure’s functioning.

Two large-scale special operations have so far been conducted on the territory of the country. Notices of suspicion have already been served on members of the criminal group, including its leader.

According to the National Police, Khimprom is a system of criminal influence on Ukraine built by a 36-year-old Russian citizen known by the alias Meksykanets. Since 2019 the organization’s leader has been on an international wanted list and, while hiding abroad, continued to remotely coordinate the activities of the criminal network’s members and the distribution of financial flows. According to preliminary information, he is currently hiding in Mexico.

A total of 23 members of the criminal organization have been documented to date. Items seized from individuals linked to Khimprom’s activities include 15 vehicles and nearly UAH 7 million.