Automatically translated version. May contain inaccuracies compared to the original.
Counterfeit documents for a 21 loader: former head of “Evropa Auto Trade” fined over 14 million hryvnias
On 9 October 2026, the Rivne City Court found the former company director Mykolaiev Volodymyr Volodymyrovych guilty of attempting to import into Ukraine a 21 telescopic loader using documents containing forged information about the value, shippers, and delivery terms. For his participation in the “scheme,” the ex-official will pay a 100% fine of the goods’ value, and all the special equipment will be confiscated in favor of the state.
This was reported by the Telegram channel “Sudom po skhemakh” citing case No. 569/6152/26.
What was the scheme?
Schemers who try to understate customs value or evade taxes when importing special equipment actively use front persons (“drops”). They appoint them as directors of shell companies that conduct no real economic activity other than formally carrying out transactions and imports using forged documents.
In this case, Evropa Auto Trade LLC imported a shipment of special equipment (loaders of the JCB and MANITOU brands) from Poland under a contract with the Polish firm AXN SOLUTIONS SPOLKA Z OGRANICZONA ODPOWIEDZIALNOSCIA.
During customs clearance, false data were entered into the declarations. The scheme was uncovered after Polish customs, at the request of the State Customs Service, sent their original export declarations.
The comparison revealed significant discrepancies:
the shippers and consignees of the goods;
commercial supply terms and account details;
invoice and statistical value;
years of manufacture and product codes.
The total declared value of the special equipment amounted to 14 205 103,30 UAH.
What did the court find and decide?
The defense attorney objected to bringing him to liability, arguing that Mykolaiev V.V. resigned as director of Evropa Auto Trade LLC in November 2023. However, the court rejected this argument: the customs declarations were prepared in 2021, when he held the position, and the director’s liability arises from actions at the time the offense was committed.
The court also noted the systematic nature of such schemes: customs officers have already drawn up 26 protocols against Mykolaiev V.V. (19 — Rivne, 6 — Volyn, 1 — Zhytomyr customs), and he has been held liable 7 times under part 1 of article 483 of the Customs Code of Ukraine.
In view of the systematic violations and the scale of the losses, Judge Yevhen Sydoruk imposed the maximum penalty:
Fine of 100% of the goods’ value — 14 205 103,30 UAH;
Confiscation of all 21 JCB and MANITOU telescopic loaders;
Recovery of 665,60 UAH in court fees.
Document: PDF proof of the original version of the news item "Підроблені документи на 21 навантажувач: екскерівника «Європа Авто Трейд» оштрафували на понад 14 мільйонів гривень". It records the publication content at the moment of the first scan, the preservation date and the source: ANTIKOR.