Ukrainian officer spends £1m on flat, car and land instead of buying food for army

A SENIOR Ukrainian army official who allegedly embezzled more than £1 million meant to buy rations for the military has been detained.

The suspect, named locally as Oleksandr Kozlovsky, was working as the head of a military department that procured food for soldiers before his arrest.

Ukraine’s State Bureau of Investigation claimed he had used the funds to buy an apartment in Kyiv, a dozen plots of land and a car instead of spending the money on supplies for the military.

“From 2022 to 2023, the official acquired unsubstantiated assets in the amount of almost 58 million hryvnia [£1.18 million],” the agency said.

Ukrainian anti-corruption campaigners Nashi Groshi alleged that Mr Kozlovsky had channelled the money through a series of private companies and family members instead of using them to purchase food.

The campaigners’ website claimed that the total embezzled amount could have been up to 170 million hryvnia.

The Telegraph could not independently verify the claims.

Since Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, Volodmymr Zelensky has repeatedly sacked officials in clampdowns on what was seen as widespread corruption in the armed forces.

The moves are seen as vital in securing the continued financial support from Kyiv’s Western allies as the conflict continues.

In August 2023, the Ukrainian president sacked a series of regional officials in charge of military recruitment after some had granted service exemptions in return for bribes.

Oleksii Reznikov, Ukraine’s former defence minister, who denies any involvement in the corruption, ultimately fell foul of the crackdown on the defence ministry when he was removed from post a month later.