The Security Service of Ukraine apprehended a tax officer who demanded bribes from business owners.

The Security Service has apprehended the chief state inspector of the Central Interregional Tax Service in the capital. The official demanded $20,000 from the director of a private construction company in Chernihiv for a "favorable" tax audit outcome.

This was reported by the Security Service (SBU).

If he received the money, the official promised the entrepreneur to "cancel" the commercial tax obligations he was supposed to remit to the state budget. Law enforcement caught him "red-handed" while receiving one of the installments – $13,000.

The tax official has been informed of suspicion, facing a potential sentence of 8 years in prison along with asset confiscation. A pre-trial investigation is currently underway to establish all circumstances of the crime and hold all guilty parties accountable.

It is noted that the tax official was detained with the assistance of the new head of the Tax Service, Ruslan Kravchenko, who was appointed on December 31, 2024. Prior to this, he led the Kyiv Regional Military Administration.