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Automatically translated version. May contain inaccuracies compared to the original.
❗️ $653 thousands in an inspection pit: what background was left behind the new head of “Lisy Ukrayiny”
Before moving to “Lisy Ukrayiny,” most of Zubovych’s career was connected to a different system — the State Environmental Inspection. And it is this period that is accompanied by the largest body of public accusations.
One of the names that regularly appears alongside Zubovych is Oleksandr Subbotenko. He is not an ordinary official today. Subbotenko is the acting head of the State Environmental Inspection of Ukraine. And one of the most unusual property stories involving Ukrainian officials is linked to Subbotenko — $653 thousands that were allegedly found in a garage inspection pit.
According to materials published by journalists with reference to a court decision, it concerned a garage in Kharkiv and the inheritance of Oleksandra Berberyan. Subbotenko tried to register rights to $653 000 — at that time about 17,4 million UAH — as inherited property. According to the version presented in the materials, the money was allegedly discovered during an inspection of the garage — in the inspection pit.
Most interestingly, media reports about that garage money said it was part of the joint “stash” of Zubovych and Subbotenko, formed from corrupt land deals.
Zubovych worked for many years in the State Environmental Inspection; since December 2021 he served as acting head of the SEI, and in 1 August 2025 he became deputy minister of economy, environment, and agriculture. Subbotenko also worked in the environmental control system during this period and later headed the SEI as acting head. As of 2026 he continues to lead the agency.
In the media, Subbotenko has repeatedly been called a person close to Zubovych and their names have been linked to a joint system of influence over territorial eco-inspections.
In particular, Zubovych was credited with influence over heads of territorial inspections, “covering” certain businesses, interfering in inspections, and even creating a paid “green corridor” for fuel at the border.
The main question in this story is that a person with such an extensive and controversial background in May 2026 moved from the ministry to SE “Lisy Ukrayiny,” and two months later effectively led the enterprise that manages millions of hectares of state forest. The supervisory board declares full confidence in the new head. And already in his first month in office he was paid 732,5 thousand UAH in salary.
Therefore, after the above, the state should be asked the following specific questions:
Did the Supervisory Board study Zubovych’s property and managerial background before handing him leadership of “Lisy Ukrayiny”? Was a reputational risk assessment conducted? Did the Supervisory Board receive information about the public accusations that accompanied his work in the State Environmental Inspection? And most importantly — what specific performance indicators justify a remuneration of over 700 thousand hryvnias per month?
Let me put it this way: expensive cars or a high salary by themselves cannot prove corruption. However, when it concerns the head of an enterprise to whom the state has entrusted millions of hectares of Ukrainian forest and billion-hryvnia financial flows, society has the right to know far more than just the surname of the new director.
Especially when that surname already carries such a long and, to put it mildly, ambiguous history...
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