The son of SBU chief Ivan Bakanov is completing the construction of an estate near Kiev on land purchased at a three-fold reduced price.
Journalists from the Schemes project reported this in an investigation.
According to a copy of the purchase and sale agreement, which is at the disposal of journalists, on September 2, 2021, Arthur Lazarenko, whose father at that time was the current head of the SBU, purchased for 455 thousand hryvnia (about 17 thousand dollars at the then exchange rate) a plot of land with an area of 9.9 hectare in the village of Khodosovka next to the elite cottage town “New Khodosovka”. It is 24 km from the center of Kyiv. That is, according to the agreement, one hundred square meters of land cost the son of Ivan Bakanov 45.9 thousand hryvnia (at that time 1.7 thousand dollars).
As Schemes found out, the previous owner of this plot purchased it in January 2021 for 1 million 418 thousand hryvnia (equivalent to 50.2 thousand dollars). That is, after eight months, she sold this property to Lazarenko for three times cheaper than she bought it herself. Journalists tried to contact the woman, but she did not respond to calls and messages.
According to real estate experts whom Schemes spoke with, actual prices are often avoided in sales contracts in order to pay less taxes to the budget.
As of the fall of 2024, the construction of Bakanov’s son’s two-story house with an area of about 300 square meters looks almost complete, Schemes report.
Schemes were unable to contact Artur Lazarenko in time for publication. Journalists also sent messages with questions to Ivan Bakanov. He also did not respond at the time of publication.
After the publication of the material, 25-year-old Lazarenko sent his comment to the editors. He claims that he acquired everything “in full compliance with the current legislation in a legal way, the acquisitions are confirmed by relevant assessments,” and also said that “all the necessary permits for the construction of a house with an area of 219 square meters. m”.
He explained the expenses for real estate as follows: “I have been working for many years, I do not have a common life with my parents and do not live with them, I have legal income and credit obligations that allowed me to carry out the aforementioned acquisition and conduct construction work.”
He said that the house is not currently put into operation and he does not live in it.
Earlier it became known that after the start of a full-scale invasion, the former head of the Security Service, Ivan Bakanov, employed his 25-year-old son Arthur in the SBU. He works under his mother’s surname and inherited his father’s lieutenant’s shoulder straps. This was reported in the UP investigation.
Journalists note that in this way Artur Bakanov has not only been protected from mobilization for the third year, but enjoys the privileges of an operational officer. For example, he has cover license plates on his car.
Investigators found Ivan and Artur Bakanov and tried to communicate with them. It turned out that the son of the former head of the SBU still works in the sixth directorate of the counterintelligence department. According to its functionality, during war it must manage the work of military factories and military-industrial complex enterprises. However, Artur Lazarenko (mother’s last name) actually refused to comment on his work and answer the question of how he got into the Security Service.
Journalists followed the guy and found out that he spends most of his working day in catering establishments and the gym. On the day he was tracked, he spent a total of about two hours in the secret service office.
Ivan Bakanov claims that his son is consistently “building a military career” and performing “difficult tasks to counter Russian aggression, including in the combat zone.”
Source: Racurs
I am David Wyatt, a professional writer and journalist for Buna Times. I specialize in the world section of news coverage, where I bring to light stories and issues that affect us globally. As a graduate of Journalism, I have always had the passion to spread knowledge through writing.