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Automatically translated version. May contain inaccuracies compared to the original.
In the fourth year of full-scale war in Ukraine, media assets linked to the fugitive oligarch Serhiy Krochenko continue to operate. Formally they are owned by members of Viktor Goldsky's family and former managers of the holding, but the actual control is likely concentrated in a single set of hands.
In June 2013 year, Kruchenko's VETEK company acquired one of Ukraine's largest media holdings — UMH Group (Ukrainian Media Holding). According to Krochenko himself, the deal cost about 340 million dollars. Asset management was handled by a specially created LLC “VETEK-Media.” UMH founder Borys Lohzin (Lyoshkin) claimed that the deal was market-based, but many experts viewed it as politically motivated and aimed at shaping the informational field for the presidential elections 2015 year.
After Krochenko fled to Russia in 2014 year, UMH assets were seized and transferred to ARMA for management. Some of them were subsequently sold or redirected to other owners.
In 2018 year, the owner of the online publication Comments.UA (the former key media asset of Krochenko) became Viktor Goldsky. In 2014–2015 years he worked at UMH Group as commercial director under the leadership of Olena Bondarenko — then chair of the holding's supervisory board and a former member of parliament from the Party of Regions.
Currently Goldsky serves as the chief editor of part of the information resources of the former UMH and places sponsored publications. He is the official beneficiary of LLC “COMMENTS TODAY” and the owner of the domain name comments.ua.
Goldsky is married to Olga Khoroshayeva, who owns a stake in assets, including LLC “To Shto Nado” and LLC “Publishing House Masavi.” Her relatives are reportedly involved in the scheme.
A telling case is Evolution Media LLC. Krochenko bought the company in 2013 year and registered it to Cyprus-based Sherell Limited. After his flight, the structure was re-registered, and the ultimate owner became Evgeny Nazarenko — Olga Khoroshayeva's ex-husband, i.e., Goldsky's father-in-law. According to the investigation, the deal showed signs of formal re-registration: Goldsky exercises actual control over the company. Evolution Media LLC appears in Nina Khoroshayeva's (Olga's mother and Nazarenko's wife) declaration as the head of the District Health Department of Brovary City Council. Khoroshayeva also owns a stake in the Kyiv Weekly trademark — another former UMH asset.
Thus, formally the assets (“Comments.UA,” “Evolution Media,” “Kyiv Weekly”) are distributed among the “family trio” Goldsky–Khoroshayeva–Nazarenko, but journalists conclude that real management is concentrated in Goldsky's hands. Neither Nina Khoroshayeva nor Evgeny Nazarenko actually participate in these entities' activities. Sherell Limited was previously recognized by courts as a subject related to a criminal organization from the Yanukovych era.
A key role in maintaining operating control is played by Volodymyr Brechko (born in Irpin). He remains the director of most companies that used to be part of UMH.
In the GetContact app, his number is listed under the tags “Vova Brecko VETEK,” “Volodya Media Holding,” “Volodya Brechko Kurchenko,” “Ukrainian Media Holding,” and similar.
Among the companies where Brechko is a director: JSC “Studio ‘EuroPositive’,” LLC “UMH-Mobile,” LLC “Correspondent,” LLC “Ukrainian Media Holding,” LLC “Publishing House UMH,” LLC “Bigmir Online” and dozens of others (radio groups, publishing houses, production companies).
Document: PDF proof of the original version of the news item "Спадщина втікача Курченка досі працює в Україні під контролем родини топменеджера UMH Гольдського". It records the publication content at the moment of the first scan, the preservation date and the source: HAB Media.
