In Zhytomyr region, an individual entrepreneur turned to a private auditing company for advice on proper documentation of their business activities and to prevent possible violations of tax legislation.

During the conversation, the 45-year-old director of the company informed the entrepreneur about allegedly discovered violations of tax legislation amounting to about 32 million UAH, which, according to him, could be reflected in the audit report of the controlling authority.

At the same time, he claimed to have the necessary connections and could influence officials of the controlling authority to adjust the audit results and reduce the amount of penalties. The cost of such "services" was estimated by the auditor at 1.3 million UAH.

Law enforcement officers detained the man while he was receiving an unlawful benefit in accordance with Article 208 of the Criminal Procedure Code of Ukraine.

Under the procedural guidance of the Zhytomyr Regional Prosecutor's Office, the director of the private enterprise was notified of suspicion of receiving unlawful benefits for influencing the decision-making of a person authorized to perform state functions, combined with extortion of such benefits (part 3 of Article 369-2 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine).

Currently, the court has chosen a preventive measure for the suspect.

Pre-trial investigation is being conducted by investigators of the Main Investigation Department of the National Police in Zhytomyr region with operational support from the Security Service of Ukraine in the region.

Note: according to Article 62 of the Constitution of Ukraine, a person is presumed innocent of committing a crime and cannot be subjected to criminal punishment until their guilt is proven in a lawful manner and established by a guilty verdict of the court.