SBU detains two Odesa company officials for allegedly helping Russia sell stolen Mariupol wheat
Ukraine's Security Service (SBU) detained two senior employees of an Odesa-based agricultural certification company on suspicion of helping Russia legalize nearly 8,000 tons of Ukrainian wheat stolen from occupied Mariupol. The grain, valued at more than 60 million hryvnias, was allegedly loaded onto a sanctioned vessel in Mariupol in 2024, shipped to the Russian port of Temryuk, and re-documented as Russian before being exported to a country in the Middle East. Both suspects have been remanded in custody and face up to 12 years in prison.
Key points
- SBU detained two senior employees of an Odesa-based agricultural certification company on October 19.
- The case involves 7,857 tons of Ukrainian wheat worth more than 60 million hryvnias, stolen from occupied Mariupol.
- Suspects are the director of the Odesa branch of a foreign certification company and the head of its laboratory.
- In 2024, the grain was loaded onto the sanctioned vessel "Alfa M" in the port of Mariupol, then transported to Temryuk in Russia's Krasnodar Krai.
- The suspects allegedly issued a falsified laboratory report falsely claiming the wheat was of Russian origin.
- Both have been charged under Part 2 of Article 28, Part 1 of Article 111-2 of Ukraine's Criminal Code — aiding the aggressor state, committed by prior conspiracy.
- The court remanded both in custody; if convicted, they face up to 12 years in prison with confiscation of property.
Why it matters
The case illustrates how private-sector actors may have been drawn into laundering grain stolen from occupied Ukrainian territory, with falsified laboratory certification and a sanctioned vessel used to disguise the cargo's origin. The charges — aiding the aggressor state, carrying up to 12 years in prison — show Ukraine pursuing legal accountability for collaboration in agricultural theft. The use of a sanctioned ship and forged origin documents also raises questions about enforcement of sanctions and export controls along the route to third countries.
What happened
On Monday, October 19, the SBU announced the detention in Odesa of two senior employees of a foreign agricultural certification company's local branch: the director of the Odesa branch and the head of its laboratory. According to the investigation, in 2024 Russians loaded 7,857 tons of Ukrainian wheat valued at more than 60 million hryvnias onto the sanctioned vessel "Alfa M" in the port of occupied Mariupol. The cargo was shipped to the Russian port of Temryuk in Krasnodar Krai, where documents were drawn up falsely stating the grain was of Russian origin, and then exported onward to a country in the Middle East through a local exporting company. The SBU says Russian representatives turned to the Odesa company to conceal the grain's true origin, and that the two suspects — despite knowing the wheat had been stolen from occupied Ukrainian territory — issued a forged laboratory conclusion attesting to Russian origin. Searches at the suspects' homes and the company office yielded computer equipment, mobile phones, documents and forged laboratory reports. Both detainees were notified of suspicion under Part 2 of Article 28, Part 1 of Article 111-2 of Ukraine's Criminal Code — aiding the aggressor state, committed by prior conspiracy by a group of persons — and a court placed them in custody. If convicted, each faces up to 12 years of imprisonment with confiscation of property.
Where reporting differs
Sources differ on the final destination of the stolen wheat: the SBU's account describes it as a country in the Middle East, sold through a local exporting company, while a separate report attributes to the Office of the Prosecutor General the claim that the wheat was delivered to Turkey, with investigators also checking whether the product could subsequently have reached EU countries and Ukraine. Sources also differ on the court's preventive measure: most describe remand in custody, while one specifies that bail was possible alongside custody.
Background
The grain originated in the port of occupied Mariupol and was transported across the Sea of Azov to the Russian port of Temryuk in Krasnodar Krai, where its origin was falsified before export. The vessel "Alfa M" used in the operation is described as sanctioned. The criminal charge — aiding the aggressor state, committed by prior conspiracy by a group of persons — is set out in Ukraine's Criminal Code and carries up to 12 years in prison with confiscation of property.