Case of the $56 million theft: Media reveals who posted bail for the head of the Antimonopoly Committee.

The head of the Antimonopoly Committee (AMCU), Pavel Kirilenko, was released on bail of 30 million hryvnias, which was paid by a company linked to Eduard Mkrtchan. Notably, the businessman’s companies are involved in government procurement.

This information was reported by journalists from the "Schemes" project. They pointed out that the AMCU branch is currently reviewing a case against one of Mkrtchan's companies regarding "anti-competitive actions."

It is noted that Kirilenko claims to know the businessman, but he is hearing the name of the company for the first time. Mkrtchan, on the other hand, stated that the bail payment was his personal initiative, but it is not related to any request to influence the AMCU's decision.

It is reported that on August 14, 2024, NABU detectives informed Kirilenko of suspicion of illegal enrichment amounting to 56.2 million hryvnias and for declaring false information. However, on August 28, he was released on bail of 30 million, which was paid by LLC "Keramet".

Journalists reported that the company is 75% owned by LLC "Astrella Capital", whose ultimate beneficiary is Mkrtchan. His father, Oleg Mkrtchan, was the general director of the industrial corporation "Industrial Union of Donbas", but since 2019 he has been serving a sentence in Russia, where he was accused of large-scale fraud.

As for LLC "Keramet", it participates in government procurement and has received orders from "Naftogaz" and "UZ".

As previously reported, the Kirilenko family claimed to have earned millions of hryvnias from a raspberry-selling business. This has already become a subject of jokes online.