Criminal proceedings launched by the Financial Investigations Department of SFS successfully closed

Complainee: State Fiscal Service of Ukraine (SFS), SFS Financial Investigation Department
Complaint in Brief: The Complainant, an asset management company, requested BOC assistance in protecting his rights and lawful interests in dealing with a criminal case. The Complainant also mentioned instances of unprofessional behavior on the part of the investigator handling this case at the State Fiscal Service’s Financial Investigations Department. The Complainant claimed that, in the course of the investigation, SFS investigators had searched the Complainant’s office premises. During this search, computers and other hardware were seized, paralyzing the company’s normal business operations. Moreover, investigators even seized the computers and hardware of other legal entities on the premises. The Complainant believed that investigators had overstepped their authority while conducting the investigation. The Complainant asked the BOC to review the case and facilitate the restoration of the asset manager’s normal business operations.
Actions taken: The BOC submitted to the SFS recommendations to verify the legality of the actions of investigators handling this case in the Financial Investigations Department and to take the necessary measures. 
Result achieved: Less than in two weeks after BOC’s involvement, the SFS’s Financial Investigation Department informed the BOC that the criminal proceedings were closed.