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Media: Deputy Head Of BelZhD Was Arrested Because Of The Conflict With "Lukashenko's Purse"

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Media: Deputy Head Of BelZhD Was Arrested Because Of The Conflict With "Lukashenko's Purse"
illustrative photo

Petro Dulub tried to bypass the interests of oligarch Sparrow.

The arrest of the first deputy head of BelZhD Petr Dulub is not directly related to the scale of the bribes imputed to him. The key reason was his desire to bypass the interests of an influential Belarusian businessman Nikolai Vorobey, through whom he had previously promoted his career and gained access to dubious logistics schemes, wrote the Community of Railwaymen of Belarus.

According to numerous sources, Vorobey is considered to be close to the Belarusian authorities, in particular to Alexander Lukashenko. This is confirmed by the fact that international sanctions have been imposed against him by the EU, the US and other countries.

Vorobey controls a significant part of logistics and energy trade, including the transit of coal and oil products through Belarus. The Bureau previously described how he continues to make money from this despite Western sanctions.

One of the key areas is the transportation of coal from Kazakhstan to EU countries - Lithuania, Latvia, and Poland. Dulub, apparently, decided to build his own supply channel, bypassing the interests of Voroby, which led to a conflict, says the Community of Railwaymen of Belarus.

Dulub had previously actively participated in logistics schemes related to the transportation of coal at preferential rates, where he gained the necessary experience. Then he tried to establish his own coal export channel by making arrangements with Kazakh partners without the knowledge and coordination with the main operators associated with Vorobyov. This was seen as a violation of informal rules, which prompted a swift criminal case. Before that, all possible violations had been ignored. Now, materials have been collected against him, including those of a corruption nature, for which he faces up to 15 years in prison.

In the meantime, one of the companies linked to Voroby, Logistic Energy, continues to export coal to EU countries despite the sanctions pressure. This company, according to official registers, is not formally subject to sanctions and is used as a logistics intermediary.

Logistic Energy was created to circumvent sanctions as a replacement for the restricted company Belkaztrans, which was also affiliated with Vorobyov. It manages shipments through Belarus to Lithuania, Latvia and Poland. In 2024, 4,831 cars of coal were delivered to these countries, while in the first quarter of 2025 - 101 cars (all - to Lithuania).

According to analytical reports, coal transit to Poland in 2024 sharply decreased (minus 1 million tons compared to 2023), while deliveries to Lithuania, on the contrary, increased sevenfold.

After delivery to Latvia, coal is mainly transported by sea through the ports of Ventspils and Riga. In order to meet the requirements of European buyers, coal is often mixed with other materials on the territory of the EU to achieve the required characteristics.

The supply scheme itself is quite complicated. Formally, coal arrives from Kazakhstan accompanied by all necessary export documents. At the logistics sites in Orsha or Krichev, the papers are changed and the formal transfer of ownership takes place. Thus, coal can be presented as Belarusian or of "undetermined" origin. This allows to circumvent both sanctions and internal bans on transit by rail from Russia or Kazakhstan to the EU.

At the same time, experts note that it is technically difficult to determine the exact origin of coal in the Shubarkul-Kuzbass region, which additionally complicates inspection and control.

There is also an alternative - using the scheme of splitting batches, fictitious sales through third countries (for example, Serbia, Turkey, UAE) and further export to the EU under the guise of goods from an independent international trader.

The other day the Prosecutor General's Office sent to court a criminal case against the first deputy head of BelZhD Piotr Dulub - he is accused of taking bribes from representatives of commercial organizations, as well as deliberate failure to perform his duties out of self-interest contrary to the interests of service.

"The preliminary investigation proved the accused receiving bribes in a particularly large amount. In addition, more than three million U.S. dollars seized during the investigation of the criminal case were turned into the state income," the Prosecutor General's Office informed.

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