The criminal case against businessman Volodymyr Naumenko, co-owner of GNT Group, is showing increasing signs of criminal proceedings being used as a tool of pressure. This was stated by Naumenko’s lawyer in a comment to Censor, which published its own investigation into the case.
Naumenko’s lawyer calls the charges of fraud and document forgery absurd and politically motivated.
The high-profile case revolves around a dispute between Ukrainian businessmen and two credit funds registered in the Cayman Islands. The creditors claim that the co-owners of GNT Group never intended to repay the loan. The businessmen respond that they were diligently paying interest until the war disrupted operations – a situation the funds exploited to seize their assets in a corporate raid.
“The legal qualification of Naumenko’s actions is absurd, and his basic rights as a Ukrainian citizen are being ignored,” said lawyer Oleksandr Zubrytskyi. According to him, the investigation claims that Naumenko never intended to repay the loan from the outset, but this version does not stand up to any scrutiny.
“During the first year after receiving the loan, approximately $3 million was paid solely as interest. According to the case law of the Supreme Court, partial repayment of a loan directly excludes the possibility of qualifying such actions as fraud,” Zubrytskyi explained.
According to Zubrytskyi, collateral worth over $320 million was pledged for the loan – an amount 16 times greater than the loan itself. “Why would anyone provide collateral worth 16 times the loan amount if the intention was to fraudulently misappropriate the funds?” the defense lawyer asked rhetorically.
Another charge in the case involves alleged forgery of warehouse documents related to grain. However, the defense emphasizes that this accusation contradicts the findings of audits conducted by Cotenca – a company hired by the creditors themselves. These inspections were carried out at least three times over two years and each time confirmed the presence of the grain. Moreover, as the lawyer notes, “Naumenko was not an official or employee of the company, and his signature does not appear on any of the allegedly falsified documents.”
The defense insists that the case is purely commercial in nature but is being artificially criminalized. Several Ukrainian courts have already recognized the existence of commercial legal relations, yet the criminal case on fraud charges has not been reviewed on its merits.
The situation is further aggravated by Naumenko’s critical health condition. In three months of pre-trial detention, he has not received any medical care, despite having a diagnosis incompatible with imprisonment. The Court of Appeal ordered a cardiological examination, but as of early August, it had still not been conducted.
A complaint to the European Court of Human Rights has already been registered. The case is titled “Naumenko v. Ukraine” and will be reviewed under the Court’s priority procedure, the lawyer said.
The defense also reports signs of procedural pressure: Naumenko has been denied family visits, and motions filed by the prosecution are scheduled for court review less than an hour after submission.
At the same time, the lawyers note some positive developments. The court denied the request for pre-trial detention of Serhii Groza – Naumenko’s business partner and co-owner of GNT Group – recognizing that the case bears the characteristics of a commercial dispute rather than a criminal one. Nevertheless, Naumenko remains in custody.
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