Ukrainian anti-corruption agency detained senior SBU official during search operation
Ukraine's anti-corruption investigators searched and detained senior Security Service of Ukraine official Serhii Duka during the special operation "Carthage". Investigators say he threatened detectives with a pistol, destroyed electronic devices and received nearly $3 million in crypto assets. The operation has led to criminal proceedings, dismissals and suspensions within the security and law-enforcement agencies.
Hovedpunkter
- Serhii Duka was detained on 4 November 2026 in the settlement of Roslyavychi in Kyiv Oblast.
- NACP and SAP searched premises of senior SBU and National Police officials under a court order as part of operation "Carthage".
- Duka allegedly threatened NACP detectives with a pistol and destroyed at least two phones and one hard drive with a hammer.
- Detectives recorded the transfer of four crypto wallets worth nearly $3 million to Duka.
- The prosecution alleges the payment was intended to secure the lifting of an asset seizure affecting the "Khimprom" drug syndicate through the Office of the General Prosecutor.
- NACP and SAP named five participants in the criminal organization as suspected; Andrii Osypov was identified as its organizer.
- On 5 November, the Kyiv Court of Appeal and Cassation selected custody with a possible bail of 15 million hryvnias for National Police official Volodymyr Tsenov.
Hvorfor det er vigtigt
The case exposes alleged corruption links running through Ukraine's security and law-enforcement institutions, including the SBU, the National Police and the Office of the General Prosecutor. It also highlights the risks posed by powerful officials obstructing investigators: during a legally authorized search, gunfire was narrowly avoided. The proceedings have already had institutional consequences, including dismissals, suspensions, criminal charges and the resignation and dismissal of the General Prosecutor.
Hvad der skete
On 4 November 2026, the National Agency on Corruption Prevention and the Specialized Anti-Corruption Prosecutor's Office searched the homes of senior SBU and National Police officials as part of the special operation "Carthage". NACP detectives detained Serhii Duka, the first deputy head of the SBU's Department of National Security Protection, in the settlement of Roslyavychi in Kyiv Oblast. According to investigators, he threatened detectives with a pistol, broke at least two phones and destroyed one hard drive with a hammer. The detectives also recorded the transfer to him of four crypto wallets worth close to $3 million. The confrontation was resolved without gunfire after lengthy negotiations and the arrival of Duka's lawyers. Separately, NACP and SAP named five participants in the criminal organization as suspected, with Andrii Osypov identified as its organizer. The SBU dismissed officers who became subjects of the investigation, while the National Police suspended officers facing procedural actions by NACP. On 5 November, the Kyiv Court of Appeal and Cassation selected custody with a possible 15 million hryvnia bail for Volodymyr Tsenov and custody without a specified form of bail for Vitalii Rybalk.
Sådan beskriver ukrainske kilder det
Ukrainian reporting focuses on the confrontation during the search, emphasizing the alleged threats, destruction of devices, the armed security presence and the avoidance of gunfire. It places the incident within the broader "Carthage" operation, linking it to alleged bribery, crypto-asset transfers and institutional complicity. Ukrainian officials are presented as identifying Duka's role and alleging that the payment was intended to secure the release of seized "Khimprom" assets.
Baggrund
Operation "Carthage" first became public on 4 September 2026, when NACP and SAP announced that it had exposed a criminal organization that allegedly supplied senior law-enforcement officials with improper benefits in exchange for allowing fraudulent call centres and other illegal businesses to operate, and that laundered the proceeds. The operation named five participants as suspected, including serving officials from the SBU, the National Police and the Office of the General Prosecutor. After the detention of Office of the General Prosecutor staff, Prosecutor General Ruslan Kravchenko resigned; the president dismissed him on 15 September.