Afanasiadi Dmytro Mykolayovych

Former high-ranking Ukrainian customs officer and regional official who betrayed his oath and sided with the enemy

Born in 1968 in Uzbekistan, but lived and built his career for a long time in Skadovsk, Kherson Oblast. Worked for over 20 years in Ukrainian customs authorities: rose through the ranks from inspector at the Skadovsk post to first deputy head of the Southern Customs in Odesa, and also headed the Zaporizhzhia (2010–2012) and Sumy customs offices (2012–2014). He received the rank of Customs Service Advisor of the 1st rank and the status of "Honored Customs Officer of Ukraine." Afanasiadi's professional advancement is associated with the patronage of the well-known Kherson customs officer and future collaborator Vitaliy Bulyuk, under whose protection Afanasiadi became deputy mayor of Skadovsk in May 2018, holding this position at the time of the full-scale Russian invasion.

Indictment in absentia for collaboration with the enemy

In August 2026, the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) informed Dmytro Afanasiadi in absentia of suspicion of collaborationist activity (Part 7, Article 111-1 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine). As investigators from the publication “Vhoru” revealed, after the occupation of the region, the former Ukrainian official headed the illegally established occupiers’ "Kherson Customs Post" and simultaneously became deputy head of the occupying "Crimean Customs." In these positions, he facilitates the economic integration of the seized regions into the Russian system and oversees the processing of goods (including the removal of stolen Ukrainian grain). Besides the ongoing treason case, Afanasiadi had a history of corruption during his service in Ukraine: in December 2013, he was detained on suspicion of receiving a large bribe at the Sumy customs, but the case was closed due to "insufficient evidence." Now, for working for the aggressor, he faces up to 15 years imprisonment with confiscation of property.