"Forrest Gump" – A Great Corruption Saga in Ukraine – Part 1: The Miraculous Multiplication of Shares at Metrobud

A block of exactly 698,378 shares initially changes hands.

A few months later, it is no longer visible separately — and Mykyta Tarkovskyi suddenly holds the majority of Metrobud.

Shortly afterward, he, another major shareholder, and the company itself appear in the context of investigations by Ukrainian anti-corruption authorities codenamed "Forrest Gump" and "Themis."

Sometimes the most interesting story isn't hidden in a secret audio recording.

But in a spreadsheet.

In Ukraine's state issuer register SMIDA, the ownership structure of the construction company PrJSC Metrobud, with the Ukrainian company registration number (EDRPOU 32961977), can be reconstructed quarter by quarter.

And one number runs through the register's history like a common thread:

698,378 shares — 25.8659 percent.

The block changes hands

At the end of 2024, these 698,378 shares belonged to Radion Kravchenko.

Alongside him, the following also held shares:

Mykyta Tarkovskyi: 675,002 shares — 25.0001%

Valentyn Yelizarov: 677,322 shares — 25.0860%

T&A Industries Ltd, Dominica: 410,192 shares – 15.1923 %

SMIDA officially documents this structure.

In the first quarter of 2025, the same block of exactly 698,378 shares suddenly appeared under a different name:

Oleksandr Puzenko — 25.8659 percent.

Tarkovskyi's block, meanwhile, remained unchanged at 675,002 shares, or 25.0001 percent.

Then something decisive happened.

2026: 25 Percent Suddenly Became 50.87 Percent

In the first quarter of 2026, Puzenko's 25.8659 percent block disappeared from the list of major shareholders.

Instead, SMIDA suddenly reported for Mykyta Tarkovskyi:

1,373,380 shares — 50.8659 percent.

The math is exact:

675.002 + 698.378 = 1.373.380.

Or in percent:

25,0001 + 25,8659 = 50,8659.

In the second quarter of 2026 as well, Tarkovskyi remained the majority shareholder with 50.8659 percent. Valentyn Yelizarov continued to hold 25.0860 percent.

This means one point is not interpretation, but a fact in the register:

The earlier 25.8659 percent block was consolidated into Tarkovskyi's stake no later than between the end of 2025 and the first quarter of 2026.

What is not publicly visible is equally important:

The freely accessible SMIDA data contains no purchase agreement, no published price, and no explanation of the economic basis on which the transfer took place.

Then Comes "Forrest Gump"

Just a few months later, an entirely different story begins.

On August 20, 2026, the two anti-corruption bodies NABU and SAPO stated that they had uncovered an alleged criminal organization that, according to investigators, was said to be aimed, among other things, at the unlawful takeover of valuable real estate and corporate assets as well as money laundering.

According to NABU, in autumn 2025, those involved allegedly took over two companies with assets totaling 248 million hryvnia. One object reportedly involved real estate in downtown Kyiv worth more than 500 million hryvnia. In May 2026, an attempt was also allegedly made to take over further real estate worth more than 207 million hryvnia.

Names and roles were subsequently also named in the courtroom.

According to the SAPO prosecutor, Valentyn Yelizarov, who at the same time holds around a quarter of Metrobud, is said to have acted as the de facto head of the company and taken on operational tasks within the structure under investigation. According to investigators, he was attributed, among other things, with coordinating nominal managing directors and a role in legalizing funds in June 2026.

Mykyta Tarkovskyi was also named in court as a person who, according to the prosecution, was connected to Mykytas.

These are allegations by the investigating authorities.

The presumption of innocence applies.

But they coincide with an ownership structure that had just been fundamentally changed shortly before.

75.95 Percent in Two Hands

According to the register status for Q1 and Q2 2026, the following hold shares:

Tarkovskyi: 50.8659%

Yelizarov: 25.0860%

Together: 75.9519 percent of Metrobud.

This is journalistically relevant because, after the change, one of them is the majority shareholder and the other is described by the prosecution as the de facto head of the company and an operational actor within the structure under investigation.

Once again: the shareholdings do not prove any crime.

But they make the timing of events in need of explanation.

Metrobud Is Not an Isolated Island

According to NABU and SAPO, the new investigation does not only concern money movements.

It also concerns corporate assets, real estate, registers, and judicial or administrative decisions.

This is exactly where the economic environment surrounding Maksym Mykytas becomes relevant.

For years, Mykytas was closely connected to the Ukrainian construction industry and the Ukrbud complex.

Now, construction companies, real estate rights, and individuals from this broader economic environment reappear in the new investigation.

The decisive question is therefore not whether one can draw a direct "mafia line" from every historical connection.

One cannot.

The more interesting question is:

Were older corporate and personnel structures reused for new economic operations?

The Cleanest Trail Is the Share

This is precisely why the Metrobud story is so strong.

It initially requires no secret sources.

No anonymous insiders.

No interpretation of a wiretapped conversation.

It begins with three official register entries:

Q4 2024: Kravchenko 698,378 shares.

Q1 2025: Puzenko 698,378 shares.

Q1 2026: Tarkovskyi additionally holds exactly this same amount.

This is a verifiable movement.

The open question is not: has the ownership structure changed?

It has.

The questions are:

Who initiated the transfer?

At what price?

On what contractual basis?

And why did a 25-percent shareholder become the majority shareholder of Metrobud precisely before the events of summer 2026?

As long as these documents are missing, the answer remains open.

But the question itself is now on the record.

Evidence

Documented: SMIDA ownership records, share counts, and percentage figures.

Investigators' account: the roles of Yelizarov, Tarkovskyi, Mykytas, and other individuals in the "Forrest Gump/Themis" case.

Not proven: that the share transfer was part of a crime or was carried out for the operations under investigation.

Missing documents: transfer agreement, price, payment method, economic rationale, and, if applicable, company resolutions.

The presumption of innocence applies to all accused and named individuals. Shareholdings in companies and business relationships do not, in themselves, constitute proof of criminal conduct.