Forgery in Chernivtsi impersonating "Stop Corruption" regarding regional prosecutor

Forged documents have been registered as circulating in Chernivtsi Oblast. Unknown individuals sent messages to several institutions stating that false data had been found in the declarations of Artem Yas, head of the Chernivtsi Regional Prosecutor's Office. These papers are signed in the name of Serhiy Kachmarskyi, who is the head of the local branch of the All-Ukrainian Public Organisation (NGO) "Stop Corruption".

Public organisation calls incident a provocation

Representatives of the NGO "Stop Corruption" and Serhiy Kachmarskyi himself categorically denied any involvement in these appeals. The organisation emphasised that the sent document does not meet the standards of official correspondence and contains signs of forgery.

Serhiy Kachmarskyi, head of the Chernivtsi branch, confirmed that he personally did not sign such appeals, and his legal representative also did not send the relevant papers to law enforcement agencies. He drew attention to a technical error in the circulated documents: instead of the local branch's address, the address of the Kyiv office is indicated.

«Надходження будь-яких документів до силових структур від мого імені щодо діяльності прокурора — це 100% провокація. Я особисто жодних паперів не підписував і не надсилав, що легко підтвердити експертизою» (The receipt of any documents by law enforcement structures in my name regarding the prosecutor's activities is a 100% provocation. I personally did not sign or send any papers, which can be easily confirmed by an expert examination), Kachmarskyi stated.

In his view, the intent of the unknown individuals is to create a conflict between public activists and the leadership of the region's law enforcement structures.

Signs of a genuine document

The NGO "Stop Corruption" explained how to distinguish an official appeal from a forgery. All legitimate written requests and letters submitted by the organisation are on letterhead containing the logo, legal address, and full details. These elements are absent in the forged document.

The organisation has already sent an official response to the relevant authorities regarding this situation. The NGO noted that, as one of the largest anti-corruption structures in Ukraine, they periodically encounter manipulations and attempts to forge their documents.

«Як одна з найбільших антикорупційних організацій України, ми періодично стикаємося з непорядними діями та спробами маніпуляцій, спробами підробки наших запитів і звернень. Це черговий подібний випадок, тому просимо звертати особливу увагу на наявність офіційних реквізитах на документах» (As one of the largest anti-corruption organisations in Ukraine, we periodically encounter dishonest actions and attempts at manipulation, attempts to forge our requests and appeals. This is another such case, so we ask you to pay special attention to the presence of official details on documents), the organisation stated.

History of repeated incidents

This is not the first case where unknown individuals have abused the brand and symbols of "Stop Corruption". Previously, the StopCor portal reported cases where unknown individuals attempted to use the organisation's name and symbols to circulate documents in its name.

Specifically, in February 2025, in Odesa Oblast, an unknown individual, according to the NGO, forged the organisation's logo and seal for an appeal to state bodies. Also, in February 2024, StopCor wrote about the appearance of a clone of the organisation, whose representatives posed as anti-corruption activists. The NGO calls on the public to carefully verify the authenticity of documents and not to associate any appeals with the organisation solely based on a mention of its name or the surname of a specific representative.