Kolomoyskyi's arrested port in Odesa oblast transferred to ARMA management – media

"In 2019, representatives of the Chornomorskyi Rybnyi Port company, in collusion with a state registrar from the State Registration Agency municipal enterprise, illegally re-registered ownership of port infrastructure facilities to themselves to collect ship fees. At the same time, the legitimate owner of these berths is the State Property Fund of Ukraine. This effectively amounts to appropriation of state real estate — structures and a land plot measuring 31,000 square meters. As a result, shipowners paid private individuals, not the state. Since, by law, berths and their water areas constitute a single, indivisible complex, this year, the court recognized them as material evidence and prohibited any actions regarding their alienation or transfer for use", – reveals the material.

According to the publication, representatives of the Chornomorskyi Rybnyi Port insist that this court decision could lead to financial losses for both the company and the state. The Chornomorskyi Rybnyi Port LLC is one of Ukraine's main container shipping hubs.

"Leading global market companies used to work with the company, including Maersk, MSC, Hapag-Lloyd, CMA CGM, COSCO Shipping Lines, Arkas Line, Evergreen, and others. According to sources in the Ukrainian Sea Ports Authority, key global transport companies are currently exploring the possibility of changing their logistics. As the interlocutor at AMPU claims, there is a possibility that due to legal complexities, the port's operation will be unstable in the near future. In particular, cargo from Maersk and other operators could be blocked for a period ranging from several weeks to several months", – Censor.NET reported.

The journalists note that the owner of the Chornomorskyi Rybnyi Port LLC is Antarctica PJSC, which is owned by Ihor Kolomoyskyi's partner, Yurii Kiperman.

"According to the registers, the founders of Antarctica PJSC are three offshore companies belonging to Ihor Kolomoyskyi and Hennadii Boholiubov, which featured in the court proceedings in London as part of the 'Kolomoyskyi vs. PrivatBank' case as companies controlled by him", – the media informed.

Context:

Ihor Kolomoyskyi, who was formerly a co-owner of the now-nationalized PrivatBank, has been under arrest since September 2, 2023. Last autumn, he received several notices of suspicion from law enforcement agencies: for fraud and money laundering totaling UAH 570 million, for the misappropriation of UAH 9.2 billion from PrivatBank's funds, and for the illegal seizure of UAH 5.8 billion through abuse of official position and unlawful actions with electronic accounts and banking access tools.

A court chose detention as a preventive measure for him, with an alternative of bail. The bail was initially set at UAH 510 million. On September 15 of last year, after another suspicion was announced, the court increased the bail to UAH 3.891 billion, and then reduced it several times.

On May 8, 2024, the Prosecutor General's Office announced Kolomoyskyi's suspicion of contract murder. According to the investigation, Kolomoyskyi, acting out of personal revenge, ordered the murder of Karpenko, the director of a legal company, in Feodosia (Crimea) for failing to comply with demands to annul and invalidate the decisions of the open joint-stock company's general meeting of shareholders.