Ukrainian tax officials drive luxury cars bought for the price of an old "Lanos" and seem to forget how much their salaries actually are.

Journalists have unveiled the secrets of the tax officials' professional lives by analyzing their declarations and examining how they evade accountability.

This information is reported in the latest issue of Khapuga.UA.

Kiev, Central Office of the Tax Service. Elite cars come and go one after another. For instance, this brand new Toyota Yaris Cross was purchased for 1.2 million hryvnias by Victoria Klimenko, head of the State Tax Service of Ukraine.

Meanwhile, chief state inspector Tatyana Belokorenko upgraded to a RAV4 costing one and a half million. Yuri Karpec, head of the State Tax Service of Ukraine, also switched to a new Kia Sportage. However, the declared price for this vehicle is curiously only 789 thousand, while its market value is around 1.2 million hryvnias.

The parade of luxury at the tax office continues well into the evening. Journalists have noted the Mazda driven by Vladimir Kotkovets, head of the information cryptographic protection department of the State Tax Service. It is reported that Vladimir regularly uses a Mazda registered under his mother's name, although he denied this in a conversation with journalists.

The journalists were intrigued by the vehicle owned by the tax official's wife, which was listed in his declaration. The woman purchased an elite 2018 Tesla Model 3 for only 49 thousand hryvnias. However, the official claimed he did not know how much his wife paid for the "Tesla" or what its price was.

Additionally, during a conversation with tax official Kotkovets, journalists inquired about his salary at work. However, it turned out that he could not recall it.

“It's somewhere around 700–800 thousand. — 700–800 thousand, but you declared only 400. — Well, 400... I don't remember, I don't remember; you are asking me about last year,” — replied Kotkovets.

Sergey Mitkalik, head of the NGO "Anticorruption Headquarters," noted that tax evasion through underpriced purchases is a violation, and the tax inspection should investigate such cases.

“Tax evasion through underpriced purchases is a violation, and the tax inspection must investigate such instances, hold violators accountable, and recover additional funds. Moreover, any such 'gifts' could be classified as corruption offenses. Offenders face fines and inclusion in the corruption register,” — he stated.
During the investigation, journalists showed footage of the police pursuing a Volkswagen Touareg that was driving without its headlights on. The vehicle crossed an intersection on yellow and suspiciously "weaved" across the road. The recording was made on October 22 at 1 a.m. in Khmelnytsky. When the car stopped, the driver exited the vehicle barely able to stand. It was noted that the driver was Vladimir Koval'sky, deputy head of the Khmelnytsky regional tax office. The police drew up a protocol for driving while intoxicated: "Koval'sky Vladimir Viktorovych operated the Volkswagen Touareg with obvious signs of alcohol intoxication: the smell of alcohol from his mouth, unsteady gait, incoherent speech."

Journalists attempted to get a comment from Vladimir Koval'sky to understand why he drove under the influence, but he refused to explain anything. He also did not clarify how he managed to buy the Volkswagen Touareg for just 100 thousand when its market value is about 1 million hryvnias.

It has been reported that after the journalists' intervention, Koval'sky was dismissed from the Khmelnytsky regional tax office.

Next on the list for journalists was Natalia Bendass, head of the tax audit department of the Ivano-Frankivsk regional tax office. She drives an electric flagship from BMW, model
IX-40, valued at over 100 thousand dollars. This summer, the GDB took notice of the official, and she was charged:

“The tax official did not include in her declaration information about the car used by her husband. The electric crossover worth over 2.7 million hryvnias is registered under her husband's niece.”

Furthermore, Natalia Bendass failed to declare other properties:

“In particular, she 'concealed' a three-room apartment in the center of Ivano-Frankivsk, where she has been living with her husband and daughter for a long time. The value of the property, which is officially owned by the tax official's mother, exceeds 2.8 million hryvnias. She also did not provide information about a garage in the regional center.”

The total value of the assets that Bendass "forgot" to declare exceeds 5 million hryvnias. Despite everything, she continues to perform her duties at the tax service.

Danil Getmantsev, head of the parliamentary committee on finance, tax, and customs policy, assured that the dismissal of tax employees caught lying in their declarations is inevitable. We hope he and others will pay attention to the results of this investigation.