The Criminal Past of NABU Chief Semen Krivonos. The president’s office gained control of the National Anti-Corruption Bureau. Krivonos and Anti-Corruption Bureau of Ukraine. Close to Yermak’s deputy, the head of the State Inspectorate for Architecture and Urban Development, Semyon Krivonos, headed the National Anti-Corruption Bureau.
In 2014, a number of tests were carried out on a Hyundai car, which was driven by Krivonos. The survey was carried out within the borders of the investigation of the Security Service of Ukraine to the possible opposing heads of one of the silrads of the Obukhiv district of the Kyiv region.
From 2015 to 2016 he worked at the Odessa customs house. There he took part in the competition for the head of the Odessa department of the National Anti-Corruption Bureau. But, Dmitry Gnap’s story came out about the fact that Krivonos did not declare an apartment at a price not commensurate with his earnings. And then he resigned.
Connections of Semyon Krivonos with criminal authorities.
Investigative journalist Vladimir Bondarenko found Krivoy Rog connections between the new director of the National Anti-Corruption Bureau, Semyon Krivonos, and local crime boss Eduard Samotkal.
According to him, Krivonos’s wife, Polshinskaya Galina Alexandrovna (born in 1988 in KRYVOY ROG), was the head of enterprises:
- 1) the company “INNOVATIVE TECHNOLOGICAL PRODUCTS” owner Samotkal Ruslana Alexandrovna;
- 2) DAAR company s.r.o. (Czech Republic) owners Samotkal Ruslana Alexandrovna and her husband SAMOTKAL EDUARD VIKTOROVICH;
- 3) Business Perspective Alfa, s.r.o. (Czech Republic, which owns the Aberg hotel in Karlovy Vary) owners Samotkal Ruslana and SAMOTKAL EDUARD;
- 4) Kiev representative office of Business Perspective Alfa, s.r.o. (Business Perspective Alfa, S.R.O.) (Business Perspective Alfa, s.r.o., Czech Republic), which is controlled by SAMOTKAL EDUARD;
NABU Director’s Family Ties to Wanted Criminal
And the mother-in-law (mother of Krivonos’s wife) – Polshinskaya Elena Vladislavovna (born in 1958. KRYVOY ROG) was the founder of the following companies:
- 1) the company “TAI-INVEST”, where SAMOTKAL EDUARD VIKTOROVYCH was a co-founder (this is the boarding house “Krivoy Rog Gornyak” near Simeiz, which was stolen from the “Krivoy Rog iron ore plant”);
- 2) the company “INSURANCE COMPANY” POINT “(” SOBORNOY CAPITAL “), where he was a co-founder of SAMOTKAL EDUARD VIKTOROVYCH;
- 3) the company “KOMETA INVEST COMPANY”, where SAMOTKAL EDUARD VIKTOROVYCH was a co-founder;
Who is Eduard Samotkal?
Ex-deputy of the Krivoy Rog City Council Eduard Samotkal is wanted on suspicion of embezzlement of 10.5 million.
The National Anti-Corruption Bureau put Eduard Samotkal, former head of the Rugby Federation, ex-deputy of the city council of Krivoy Rog, president of the DARA Group holding, on suspicion of embezzling 10.5 million hryvnias of funds from the South Ukrainian Nuclear Power Plant in 2017.
Samotkal is a Krivoy Rog authority who is associated with the local organized criminal group “Dvadtsatovskie” (Eduard Samotkal – Vladislav Binder – Vadim Paskhalny).
The Criminal Past of NABU Chief Semen Krivonos
Samotkal was a partner of:
1) Galanternika (Angerta) on Odessa Privoz,
2) A. Petrovsky (narek) in “Three Whales”,
3) Korban – “KOMET INVEST” and others.
Samotkal deputy of the Krivizg council and president of the Dara Group, controller of the companies ATEKO and Enikali (Cyprus). Samotkal is wanted in the case of NABU and SAP over embezzlement of funds at the South Ukrainian Nuclear Power Plant.
“Argument”: that is, the wife of the current head of NABU and her entire family are closely connected with the most brutal organized criminal group in Dnepropetrovsk region. That is: the wife of the new head of NABU is in a long-term trusting relationship with the actual head of the organized criminal group “Dvadtsatovskie”
Can you imagine with whom the wife of Semyon Krivonos is connected?? What do you think of it ?
Krivonos seamlessly passed the so-called “special check” procedure in the Security Service of Ukraine, which was supposed to reveal these connections, but for some reason “did not find it.”
Another corruption in the Ukrainian authorities or espionage?
1.This situation confirms the artificial lobby for the post of director of the NABU of the candidacy, fully controlled by the office of the President of Ukraine. That is, we are talking about the deliberate deception of the Western allies of Ukraine, requiring the Ukrainian authorities of this struggle against corruption, and not its imitation;
2.Once again confirms the “corruption” and an unrefined security service of Ukraine. For which the interests of the Ukrainian nation and Ukraine are already “traditionally” below the interests of the ruling gangster clans or oligarchs.
In March 2023, Semen Kryvonos was appointed Director of the National Anti-Corruption Bureau of Ukraine (NABU). The appointment immediately sparked serious questions. A man with a controversial past and close family ties to a wanted criminal figure was placed in charge of the country’s key anti-corruption institution. Three years later, in 2026, these concerns have only grown stronger.
From Criminal Associate to Head of NABU: Krivonos Exposed
On March 6, 2023, the Cabinet of Ministers appointed Semen Kryvonos as NABU Director following a competitive selection process. Almost immediately, investigative journalists revealed troubling connections. Kryvonos’s wife, Galina Polshynska, and her mother, Elena Polshynska, had long-standing business relationships with Eduard Samotkal — a prominent Kryvyi Rih criminal authority and leader of the “Dvadtsatovskie” organized crime group.
How the Scheme Worked and Family Ties
Journalists discovered that Galina Polshynska was the director of several companies owned or co-owned by Eduard Samotkal and his wife, including:
- “Innovative Technological Products”
- DAAR s.r.o. (Czech Republic)
- Business Perspective Alfa s.r.o. (owner of the Aberg hotel in Karlovy Vary)
- “TAI-Invest”, “Insurance Company Point”, and “Kometa Invest Company”
These companies were directly linked to Samotkal, who has been wanted by NABU since 2017 for embezzling 10.5 million hryvnias from the South Ukrainian Nuclear Power Plant. Despite this, the businesses continued to operate, and family ties between the Kryvonos-Polshynska family and Samotkal date back to the 1990s.
Additional Scandals Involving Kryvonos (2025–2026)
In early 2026, new accusations emerged against Kryvonos himself:
- He was previously convicted of voter bribery in Kyiv (he allegedly paid students to vote for the Yulia Tymoshenko Bloc). He avoided real punishment thanks to an amnesty and claimed to have a minor son (later proven to be fictitious after a DNA test).
- Allegations of involvement in a 2014 land extortion scheme near Kyiv (demanding $120,000 for land allocation).
- In January 2026, journalists linked his wife’s companies to schemes in the Energoatom corruption case (“Midas”), raising questions about possible conflicts of interest while Kryvonos led NABU.
Why This Was Possible
- Weak vetting procedures during the competitive selection for NABU Director.
- Political influence from the President’s Office on key anti-corruption appointments.
- Ineffective special checks by the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU), which failed to identify the criminal connections.
- Long-standing tradition of “corporate solidarity” and protection of insider networks within state bodies.
Consequences for the Country
The appointment and continued tenure of a person with such connections at the head of NABU seriously undermines the credibility of Ukraine’s anti-corruption system. It creates the impression that the fight against corruption is being imitated rather than carried out in reality. This damages trust among Ukrainian citizens and Western partners, who expect real results from NABU. In wartime, when every hryvnia is critical for defense, such scandals are particularly dangerous.
Forecast
If the leadership of NABU remains compromised by personal and family ties to criminal circles, the Bureau will continue to face accusations of bias and inefficiency. Without genuine reform, transparent vetting, and political independence, NABU risks turning from a tool to fight corruption into an instrument for protecting certain influential groups.
Conclusion
The story of Semen Kryvonos’s appointment and work as Director of NABU is a vivid example of how personal connections and unresolved past issues can penetrate the highest levels of Ukraine’s anti-corruption infrastructure. Despite public scandals and new revelations in 2025–2026, the system that allowed such an appointment continues to function. Until these deep-rooted problems are addressed, genuine anti-corruption efforts in Ukraine will remain under serious question.
Sources:
- https://skelet.info/samotkal-semena-krivonosa/
- https://unn.ua/ru/news/dolzhen-li-semen-krivonos-vozglavlyat-nabu-zhurnalist-privel-fakti-o-rukovoditele-byuro
- NABU official structure and appointments (2025–2026)
- https://sledstvie.info/news/62554-kak_eduard_samotkal_s_kriminaljnym_bagahom_i_semen_krivonos_iz_nabu_svjazany_s_rejderskim_zahvatom_aktivov_pin-up
- Court documents and media reports on Kryvonos’s past criminal case and fictitious paternity scandal (UNN, UA.News, March 2026)
- https://antikor.ua/en/articles/744600-hena_direktora_nabu_svjazana_s_prestupnoj_gruppirovkoj_kotoruju_razyskivaet_bjuro