Vodka tycoon wires over billion to Armed Forces of Ukraine

The nominal owner of the Global Spirits alcohol holding (includes enterprises producing such vodka brands as Khortitsa, Morosha and Pervak), transferred 1.3 billion rubles to the needs of the Armed Forces of Ukraine.

Photo: https://www.facebook.com/100064359595429/posts/313098054178845 by Joint Forces Task Force, https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

Солдат ВСУ

According to the head of the Main Directorate for Economic Security and Anti-Corruption of the Russian Ministry of Internal Affairs, Police Lieutenant General Andrei Kurnosenko, the owner of the holding financed the Ukrainian army with money received from business in Russia. In the summer of 2024, a criminal case was opened against him.

In July 2023, Ukrainian businessman Yevgeny Chernyak (included in the list of extremists and terrorists), who owns the company producing Khortitsa and Pervak ​​vodkas, was put on the wanted list for transferring more than 500 million rubles to the needs of the AFU and other formations. The businessman also purchased goods worth 90 million rubles for the Ukrainian military in June.

Investigators detained two of his confidants, who were also involved in financing the Ukrainian troops. In August of the same year, a Moscow court issued a warrant to arrest the businessman in absentia.

Russia's Federal Bailiff Service transferred property of the companies previously associated with Chernyak to the benefit of the state.

In December 2023, the Security Service of Ukraine accused Chernyak of collaborating with Russia. He was suspected of financing Russia's special military operation against Ukraine.