Investigative journalists of Bihus.Info claim that businessman Vadym Hrona "goes to ARMA almost every day and gives instructions to the agencyʼs employees", although he does not officially work in the department.
He was a freelance adviser to the head of the agency Elena Duma from July 7 to October 3, 2023, and on October 4 he resigned at his own request. At the same time, Hrona did not stop going to work, and later became the deputy head of the public Anti-Corruption Council at the Agency for Search and Asset Management.
Journalists of Bihus.Info also claim that on October 5, Hrona used physical force against the ex-head of the Central interregional territorial administration of ARMA Vladyslav Romanov. Then Hrona, as Romanov explains, wanted to give him instructions on what to do with a certain asset. And when Romanov refused and left the building, Hrona caught up with him and hit him. The incident was recorded by video surveillance cameras. Later, Vladyslav Romanov was fired, as was his colleague Vitaliy Teslenko, at that time the head of the internal audit department of ARMA, who witnessed what happened.
However, according to journalists, Vadym Hrona continues to work in ARMA and use an official pass.
What does ARMA do?
Almost all seized Russian and Belarusian assets are transferred to ARMA. The new leader must ensure that thousands of seized assets do not disappear, depreciate and, after confiscation, benefit the state.
Currently, ARMA manages assets worth more than 5 billion hryvnias.
The first head of the agency Anton Yanchuk was suspended by the government after being accused of disrupting the heating season in Lviv region, and recently he was suspected of embezzling 400 million hryvnias. His successor Vitaliy Syhydyn, who served as the head of the institution until 2021, left the agency on suspicion of misappropriating $400 000.
In August 2021, Dmytro Zhoravovych began to perform the duties of the head of ARMA, and in September the composition of the commission was approved, which elected a new permanent head of the agency — for the first time in two years. Olena Duma became the leader.