“‘Cashier’ or Fraudster: Who Really Gave the Interview to Bihus?”

Prologue: When Camouflage Becomes Masquerade

On January 15, 2025, Denis Bihus’s YouTube channel published an interview with “serviceman Gonchar,” who, wearing military uniform, made serious accusations against judges of Ukraine’s Supreme Court. The video garnered hundreds of thousands of views, caused media resonance, and became grounds for new attacks on the judicial system.

But who is really hiding behind the military uniform? Our investigation reveals: this is a person with a criminal past in three countries, who changed his name and surname three times, is on international wanted lists for fraud, and works as a provocateur under the control of Ukrainian intelligence services.

Alexey of a Thousand Faces: Karpenko → Gonchar → Shevchenko → Gonchar Again

Real name: Karpenko Alexey Viktorovich
 Date of birth: February 14, 1974
 Place of birth: Orenburg, Russian Federation

Chronology of transformations:

• April 10, 2010 — surname change from Karpenko to Gonchar (certificate of name change issued by Central ZAGS Department of MMUJU, file №12)
• May 28, 2014 — change to Shevchenko Mikhail Viktorovich
• October 25, 2015 — return to Gonchar Alexey Viktorovich
• November 5, 2015 — marriage to Shevchenko Ksenia Vitalievna

Most interesting is how he became Ukrainian. On March 27, 2013, the Lenin District Court of Mykolaiv in case № 489/1351/13-c satisfied Gonchar’s petition to establish the fact of place of birth in Ukraine.

Court’s version: his parents allegedly went on a long business trip to Orenburg, where he was born, but “didn’t manage to register the fact of his birth in Mykolaiv.”

Reality: classic scheme of obtaining Ukrainian citizenship through court with fabricated documents.

The Omsk Trail: Six Years for Fraud

Russian publication “Commercial News” has chronicled Karpenko-Gonchar’s crimes since 2001. The first publication appeared under the headline “Siberian Capital Left Overboard,” the latest in July 2024.

July 12, 2005 — Kirovsky District Court of Omsk (case in court archives) sentenced Alexey Karpenko to 6 years imprisonment under part 4 of article 159 of the RF Criminal Code — fraud on an especially large scale.

Charges: seven proven episodes of real estate fraud totaling over 40 million rubles.

Signature method: using forged documents, owners allegedly sold real estate to third-party firms, which then resold it. Real owners long remained unaware that according to Rosreestr documents, the property no longer belonged to them.

Classic example: auto gas filling station at 20 Years of RKKA Street, 23 in Omsk. Owners accidentally discovered that a loan of 4 million rubles had been taken from Sberbank using their gas station as collateral.

St. Petersburg Rise and Fall

After serving an incomplete term in Omsk colony №8, Karpenko departed for St. Petersburg in September 2008. Almost immediately got a job as Deputy General Director for Commercial Affairs at FSUE “Russian Scientific Center ‘Applied Chemistry’” — a strategic enterprise producing rocket fuel.

Question: why hire someone who just got out of prison for real estate fraud for such a position?

Answer: became clear on February 23, 2012, when the Main Investigation Department of St. Petersburg MIA opened a criminal case against Karpenko under part 4 of article 159 of RF Criminal Code. Charges: embezzlement of 40 million rubles.

Scheme: convinced plant tenants to transfer rent payments not to scientific center accounts, but to affiliated companies. After the case was opened, he disappeared and remains on international wanted lists.

Omsk Trail in Perm

Under Karpenko’s management, the Perm branch of “Applied Chemistry” became mired in debt. Result: arrest of property by bailiffs and sale on April 20, 2011, at auctions of 22 real estate objects (90% of all branch property) for 38,198,253 rubles.

Buyers — Omsk firms:

• LLC “Trading House ‘Duna’”
• LLC “Business-Profi”
• LLC “Modern Automation Technologies”

Scheme: after purchase, all these firms leased the premises to the plant itself. The state enterprise paid 11 million rubles monthly to work in its own workshops.

According to independent expert assessment, the real value of sold property was 573,008,000 rubles — 15 times higher than the sale price.

Ukrainian Episode: Kyiv Lands for a Million Dollars

October 27, 2021 — SBU detained Gonchar under criminal case № 42021102060000022 on suspicion of crimes under parts 2 of article 15, 4 of article 190, 2 of article 190 of Ukraine’s Criminal Code.

Case essence: illegal seizure of land plots in Kyiv through forged decisions of Ochakiv District Court of Mykolaiv region.

Scheme:

April 21, 2021 — Ochakiv court issues additional decision in case №2–807/2007, recognizing PE “Remontnik-Yug’s” ownership rights to 4 land plots in Kyiv:

• 3.6060 ha at Sviatoshynska RDA, Yakova Kachury St., 13-B
• 0.5136 ha at Podilska RDA, Naberezhno-Luhova St., 8-B
• 0.2000 ha at Pecherska RDA, Druzhby Narodiv Blvd.
• 0.8343 ha, Saperno-Slobidska St., 37-V

May 27, 2021 — registration of ownership rights under number 42185647

SBU detains group during attempt to sell one plot for 1 million dollars

September 28, 2021 — Mykolaiv Appellate Court overturned the illegal decision, establishing use of forged documents.

Preventive measure: house arrest at night until December 29, 2021 (Pechersky District Court ruling of 29.10.2021, case № 757/57355/21-k).

Million-Dollar Debts

Parallel case opened against Gonchar for fraud of $1.05 million based on lawsuits by:

Oleg Goretsky (lawyer) — $215,000:

• Loaned $50,000 in March 2021
• Another $210,000 in various amounts later
• When Gonchar refused to return money, filed police complaint

Alexander Zholobetsky (People’s Deputy VIII convocation) — $590,000:

• Loaned various amounts during 2020–2021
• According to Zholobetsky, Gonchar “always promised to return money but constantly invented stories: bank problems, robbery in Italy”

Case status: proceedings suspended due to defendant’s mobilization to AFU in March 2023.

Undercover Agent: Meeting the Elite

According to testimony of ex-Supreme Court Chairman Vsevolod Knyazev (HACC interrogation protocol, November 2024):

“The chairman of one of Mykolaiv courts introduced me to Gonchar, saying: ‘This is my godfather.’ When I was appointed Supreme Court judge in late 2017, Gonchar appeared in my life and began pushing for friendship… He constantly boasted of wealth: luxurious house in Koncha-Zaspa, Maybachs, Rolls-Royces. He said: ‘I’m like an oligarch, but don’t shine.’”

Turning point: end of 2021. Knyazev stops communication after:

• Learning about Gonchar’s criminal past
• Seeing his SBU detention in news
• Receiving information that he boasts of acquaintance with Supreme Court chairman

Operation “Provocation”

March 1, 2023 — Gonchar writes statement to NABU about preparing bribes for judges through State Judicial Administration head Alexey Salnikov.

Operation scheme:

1. Gonchar under NABU control transfers $5,000 to Salnikov allegedly for Cassation Administrative Court judges
2. Plus $2,500 “for services”
3. Everything recorded on video in “Prague” restaurant

March 8, 2023 — conversation recording where Salnikov confirms: “Everything is done on this issue. I’ll say that it was delivered… They said this is it, they’ll inform” (Farvater Plus case).

May 15, 2023 — arrest of Knyazev and lawyer Goretsky in $2.7 million bribery case.

Court Assessment

From HACC ruling (Salnikov case):

“The totality of evidence regarding the applicant’s repeated changes of personal data, his participation in criminal proceedings both on the territory of the Russian Federation and in Ukraine, including in the status of applicant in another criminal proceeding, the presence of debt obligations to third parties, etc. force the Court to critically assess his testimony and accept it only in the part confirmed by other evidence.”

Military Cover: Lifesaving Draft

March 2023 — mobilization to AFU. Perfect timing:

• Suspension of all criminal cases against Gonchar
• Creation of “Defender of the Motherland” image
• Right to wear military uniform to increase trust

July 2023 — cessation of payment for rented house in Koncha-Zaspa worth $25,000 per month.

Testimony Under Oath

HACC interrogation (Salnikov case, November 2024):

Gonchar, under oath and warned of criminal liability for misleading the court:

• Refused to answer questions about RF citizenship
• Denied his convictions in Russia
• Called “yellow press” media that published documents about his past
• Could not explain discrepancies in his own testimony
• Fantasized and invented answers on the spot (court assessment)

On the question about wanted status in RF answered: “FSB RF is looking for me because of my position. I’m still wanted.”

New NABU Operations

May-July 2024 — Gonchar under NABU control as private company representative conducted negotiations about providing $200,000 unlawful benefit to deputy chairman of Dnipropetrovsk Regional State Administration for long-term land plot allocation.

Bihus and Trust Manipulation: Conscious or Accidental Mistake?

When experienced journalist Denis Bihus invites such a person for interview, questions arise:

1. Did he know about the interviewee’s criminal past?
2. Did he verify information reliability?
3. Why dress him in military uniform?

Manipulation Technology

Military uniform = trust
 Using camouflage creates subconscious image of defender, hero, trustworthy person.

“Whistleblower” status = truthfulness
 Role of person “exposing corruption” automatically tunes audience to trust their words.

Details without context = credibility
 Mentioning specific names, amounts, circumstances creates illusion of being informed.

Who Benefits?

NABU/SAP: need to save reputation after failed cases involving Gonchar-provocateur

Political forces: discrediting judicial power ahead of possible personnel changes

Gonchar: opportunity to bargain with law enforcement about closing own cases

Epilogue: The Price of Trust

The Gonchar-Karpenko-Shevchenko case is a textbook on how intelligence services use persons with criminal pasts to discredit unwanted figures.

Numbers that don’t lie:

• 20+ years of criminal activity in three countries
• 3 countries of wanted status (Russia, possibly Kazakhstan)
• 4 changes of personal data
• 6 years in prison for fraud
• 40 million rubles embezzlement in St. Petersburg
• 573 million rubles damage in Perm
• $1 million land fraud in Kyiv
• $1.05 million debts to creditors
• $200,000 attempted bribery in 2024

Question: why does the court critically assess this person’s testimony, but a leading journalist doesn’t?

Answer: either Bihus didn’t verify the source, or consciously used it to manipulate public opinion.

In both cases, this is a fiasco of professional journalism and betrayal of audience trust.

All facts confirmed by court case documents, court decisions, Russian media publications, and HACC interrogation protocols. Document copies stored in editorial office.