Ukraine’s Nabu and SAP reveal criminal network operating 52 call centres with links to law enforcement
Ukraine’s National Anti-Corruption Bureau and Specialised Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office have uncovered a criminal organisation that coordinated at least 52 fraudulent call centres and allegedly relied on officials from law-enforcement agencies for protection. Investigators say the network also engaged in drug distribution, kidnapping, assaults, extortion and arranging attacks, while the pre-trial investigation continues.
Key points
- Nabu and SAP announced the operation on 4 November 2026.
- The network coordinated at least 52 fraudulent call centres employing approximately 2,700 people.
- Call-centre owners reportedly paid US$7,000 per centre each month for protection.
- At least 12 people were involved, including law-enforcement officials.
- Participants accessed government databases, search materials and Kyiv’s “Safe City” cameras through an SBU employee account.
- In July 2026, three masked men attacked a man outside a Kyiv sports club; a police officer later known as “Consultant” helped the attackers evade interception.
- The investigation also covers alleged drug distribution, kidnapping, torture, extortion and violence ordered through the network.
Why it matters
The case exposes alleged links between a large-scale fraud network and officials who could provide sensitive information, surveillance access and operational protection. It also extends beyond call centres to alleged drug distribution, kidnapping, torture and the extortion of millions of dollars. The scale of the network, involving approximately 2,700 workers and payments from at least 52 centres, makes the investigation significant for law-enforcement accountability and institutional oversight.
What happened
Nabu and SAP said their operation “Carthage” exposed an organisation that coordinated at least 52 fraudulent call centres, where approximately 2,700 people worked. Investigators say the network’s activities also included drug distribution, kidnapping, assaults and extortion. Call-centre owners paid connected law-enforcement officials US$7,000 per centre each month to facilitate their operations.
According to investigators, members obtained information from state databases, access to search materials and footage from Kyiv’s “Safe City” surveillance network through an SBU employee account. In July 2026, three men in masks and tactical clothing followed a man for several weeks, using photographs of his car obtained from the cameras to track him. They attacked him outside a sports club in central Kyiv, where two men restrained him and a third struck him with a metal pipe.
A police officer known as “Consultant,” who allegedly served as deputy head of a criminal investigation unit in Kyiv Oblast, assured the attackers that they would not be intercepted and helped them leave the region. SBU officers known as “Akim” and “Kryminal” were also alleged to have helped the network resolve matters inside the SBU and the Prosecutor General’s Office. SBU confirmed searches of its employees, while Nabu reported that an SBU official obstructed a search and threatened detectives with a weapon. Serhii Duka, the first deputy head of the SBU’s National Security and Defence Department, was detained.
How Ukrainian sources describe it
Ukrainian reporting focuses on Operation “Carthage,” the alleged connections between the criminal network and senior law-enforcement officials, and the mechanisms that enabled protection. The reporting draws heavily on Nabu materials concerning payments, database access, surveillance footage, the evacuation of attackers and interference during searches. Attention also centres on the detention of Serhii Duka and the possible involvement of other detainees. Some claims about the network’s relationships, violence and overseas assignments remain attributed to investigators or case materials.
Background
Operation “Carthage” had previously exposed an organisation linked to fraudulent call centres. Further disclosures detailed the role of law-enforcement representatives and presented the July 2026 attack in central Kyiv as an example of how access to “Safe City” cameras allegedly helped the group identify and track a target.