The scheme for trading tissues from the deceased in Chernivtsi operated through the 'Kit Group' network

The scheme for trading tissues from the morgue in Chernivtsi operated through the Kit Group exchange network. This is reported by the international investigative bureau Absolution.

According to the investigation, the general director of the Chernivtsi Oblast Communal Pathology and Anatomical Bureau, Dmytro Ivanovych Hrechko, organized illegal activities involving the removal of tissues from deceased individuals. The bureau did not have a license to operate a tissue and human cell bank and was not included in the state registry of transplant entities. The case is being investigated under part 5 of art. 143 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine (illegal trade in human anatomical materials).

From 2024 to 2025, contracts were concluded between the bureau and the Kyiv company Proboness (director Olena Vasylivna Tonkonoh, owner Andriy Vasylovych Barkov) for the “provision of services” involving the removal of anatomical materials for the production of bioimplants.

Proboness positions itself as a producer of allografts (bone and soft tissue transplants) and states that it is the first in Ukraine to manufacture such materials from donor human material.

The investigation believes that the activities extended far beyond official contracts. Pathologists were appointed transplant coordinators in violation of the law (this activity is incompatible with the work of a pathologist). Teams for tissue removal were created. In some cases, materials were taken even after relatives of the deceased refused, using manipulations and concealing the commercial nature of the actions. The removed tissues (musculoskeletal system, skin fragments, etc.) were transferred to Proboness and other persons.

The role of Kit Group.

Money for anatomical materials, by Proboness representatives and third parties, was handed to the staff of the pathology bureau in cash through a network of currency exchange offices “KIT Group” (Liberty Finance). This is a firm associated with the Tkachenko family, who operated under the umbrella of MP Oleksandr Bakumov and have close ties with the GPU MVS (State Border Guard Service).

After this, funds were allocated among the bureau director, pathologists, and a lab assistant who acted as a courier and organized the shipment of materials, including by rail. According to preliminary data from the investigation, during the period from March to July, participants in the scheme received no less than 190 thousand hryvnias of unlawful profit.

KIT Group — Kit Group — is one of the largest networks of currency exchange points in Ukraine. The company positions itself as a fintech platform and has about 90–98 branches in nearly 30 cities across the country, including Chernivtsi. In March 2026 the National Bank of Ukraine revoked licenses of a financial company affiliated with the network. The regulator deemed its business reputation not unimpeachable due to identified illegal financial activities.