FirePoint, a major drone manufacturer, is linked to Timur Mindich and Andriy Yermak, with Ihor Khmelyov involved, raising questions about connections and business influence.
Ukrainian MP Yaroslav Zhelezhniak reveals details in a new video on his YouTube channel.
“Yaroslav Zheleznyak: In this blog, we will discuss the drone manufacturer and Firepoint company. It will focus on the company’s connections with Timur Mindich and Andriy Yermak.
The Mindich tapes revealed information about Ihor Khmelov (“Shmel”), who was a long-time partner of Mindich. At least in the initial stage of FirePoint’s operations, the company received assistance from Yermak.
I, Yaroslav Zheleznyak, share all of this in my blog.
So, friends, the moment has come when we can reveal another secret to you. I won’t drag it out for long. We’re going to talk about the drone and now missile manufacturing company, as we understand, FirePoint.
Let me start with a small disclaimer: you won’t hear today about potential corruption activities that may be linked to this company. Why? Because we have to wait for the anti-corruption authorities to do their job there.
What you will hear about is the connection between the company, Mindich, and Yermak. By the way, that’s something new. In this case, I’ll explain why, one way or another, this whole story about the connection — and the knowledge of it — has been associated with me. That’s because I’m the person who filed a report regarding the possible influence of Mindich and the company on military procurement and everything that could have been happening there. I’ll even tell you how I came to have that status.
The story is very simple and, honestly, quite ordinary. Back in March, we started our own investigations about drones and began with a completely different firm — Kolyubayev and Kiryushchenko. They re-registered under one of the British shell companies. We found them there. But while I was inquiring about that company, various sources, one after another, kept telling me that, one way or another, I should pay attention to another company that had suddenly started growing its turnover and orders dozens of times faster than all the others. And they specifically mentioned FirePoint.
I probably won’t, and honestly don’t see the need to, talk about specific numbers right now. Moreover, to be frank, part of that information is obviously classified. I don’t even want to know it theoretically, and I won’t. But everyone in the market, one way or another, was saying: “Oh, pay attention to that company.” And those in power were saying that Andriy Yermak, the head of the Presidential Office, was personally and persistently advocating for it quite often. And that company was called FirePoint.
When we first opened the Open Register, we immediately saw the owner — essentially the only owner — Yegor Skalyha. That’s not secret information; you can see it in any public registry if you look up FirePoint. This information was already mentioned publicly. And this Yegor Skalyha is, let’s say, a location manager — which, well, matched our findings quite closely. Plus, we started searching for connections and found some link to Kolyubayev. So at first, we thought it was Yermak’s doing.
But the more we dug into the story, the more we uncovered a completely different connection — very hidden and, to be honest, quite well concealed. And now the moment has come when I can finally tell you about that connection. Why now? Because, one way or another, the company has already been mentioned on Mindich’s tapes.
So, this is Yaroslav Zheleznyak, and you’re watching the Zaliznyy Nardep channel. Today, you’ll find out at least who really stands behind the major drone manufacturer — the company FirePoint.
So, let’s begin.
Right away, I want to make one disclaimer: I’ve heard that they’re currently producing pretty good drones, and apparently, I haven’t heard anything bad about their missiles. That doesn’t mean there’s no “magic” happening there — I’m just not claiming it openly, because I don’t want it to be interpreted that way, either by us or abroad.
And disclaimer number two: the connection with Mindich is, of course, bad — but what should really interest us there is corruption. So let’s wait and see; if NABU finds any confirmation of this, they will probably make it public.
And point number three is that the connection between the company, Mindich, and the office — the office I mean is that of Mindich, where Tsukerman, Myroniuk, and others worked — is also clear.
To support my words, I’ll first show you a video from the court, just so we can confirm right away that this has already been mentioned publicly.
Court: March 25, a conversation took place between Tsukerman and Fursenko with the following content:
Tsukerman: “Well, it doesn’t matter. You’re already an employee of FirePoint.”
Fursenko: “FirePoint, yes, I’ll calculate now, also taxes, how much is needed.”
Tsukerman: “Well, everything will be paid for you.”
Fursenko: “And Tsukerman will pay for you?”
Fursenko: “No, he said he would.”
Tsukerman: “Of course he will pay.”
Fursenko: “Understood.”
Court: This conversation is recorded in Volume Two, on page 147.
In addition to this communication, on April 3, Fursenko indicates that the last person employed was given the opportunity to travel abroad and move freely within the country. In a conversation, presumably with his wife, Fursenko says:
Fursenko I.L.: “And today they’re submitting me.”
Fursenko O.M.: “Where?”
Fursenko I.L.: “Well, where? For a deferment.”
Fursenko O.M.: “Congratulations. Now in a new car, so you can pass through the checkpoint calmly?”
Fursenko I.L.: “I’m saying, Dima, do you have any badges like the others, so I can put on a FirePoint one too — lead specialist, all that.”
Fursenko: “Yes, he will ask, what will you say. Military secret. That’s it.”
Fursenko I.L.: “No, it’s the border guards. I told you, I asked them then. He says it’s the border guards. We call them in advance if someone is traveling.”
Yaroslav Zheleznyak: Well, anyway, you probably aren’t that interested in the rest. You’ve already heard, and will hear later, the name Ihor Khmelyov. He will also appear later as Dzhmil or Shmel.
Court: From the corresponding page.
Tsukerman to Fursenko: “Ihoryosh, fifty thousand, write it down. Shmel is asking for something. Okay, let’s share, how much, and the fifty thousand? Timur is asking. You’re recording Shmel, just so you’ll give it to me, so I don’t have to do it myself.”
Court: Next – page 86.
Fursenko: “So, fifty thousand for Shmel, right?”
Tsukerman: “No, fifty thousand Timur will take, I’ll deliver it.”
Tsukerman: “But that’s for Shmel. And for Shmel, some amount — if we can give it, we need to think about how much.”
Fursenko: “And if we still give to Chegevare, then what about Shmel?”
Tsukerman: “Well, prepare 100,000 for Shmel. That should be enough.”
Yaroslav Zheleznyak: And here, they did guess the name, but let’s, right away, set aside the story with Skalyha and the location manager. We honestly reviewed all the series and publications in which Timur Mindich was involved in one way or another, to find out who their location manager was.
Surprisingly, we didn’t find any confirmation there. Well, some distant hints, but, to put it mildly, nothing that looked like Kolyubayev. For a long time, we couldn’t figure out the story of how Mr. Skalyha, who obviously had no prior connection to the production of Fire drones and, accordingly, FirePoint, suddenly became such a manufacturer.
The answer to this question is quite simple — it’s his school connections with another co-founder, an engineer, and, honestly, as far as I understand, the real brains behind the whole company that actually produces this, and, frankly, quite well — Denis Shtilerman.
You won’t find this connection because Mr. Shtilerman once had a different surname. But in this case, well, in short, Skalyha was his manager.
Unfortunately, in this way, it didn’t lead to Mindich at all. But then, suddenly, we received information that negotiations regarding this company were being conducted, including in Israel, by Mr. Tsukerman. It’s unclear whether it was Alexander Tsukerman or Mykhailo — they are twins, so the person didn’t distinguish clearly. She said that he was leading these negotiations.
We then started looking for this connection, which led us to another co-owner. And, as you understand, this is the same Ihor Khmelyov. He will also appear on the tapes as Shmel.
For context: who is Ihor Khmelyov? You can simply Google him along with Mr. Mindich. You will find many, one way or another, connections, but they can be quite straightforward. For example, in 2008, Ihor Khmelyov acted as a guarantor for the company Forent LLC — Timur Mindich’s company — for $75,000. And, in short, there are plenty of other connections that, one way or another, lead back to Mindich.
They even had joint businesses from 2017–2021 — TandemGroup, Atletbud, Olympic Hill. In short, there’s a lot connected to this sphere.
Court: Tsukerman says: “There’s plenty of dollars, we’ve handed out almost all the bad ones to them.”
“Uh-huh.”
“Because Rocket also gave such bad ones.”
Court: There was a swear word here, which I won’t quote.
And last time he said: “Well, look, there’s about a million there.”
“I don’t have it.”
“Well, about a million.”
“Uh-huh, 350?”
“And I understand most of it went to Shmel.”
“Yes. Well, of course.”
Yaroslav Zheleznyak: Accordingly, the person referred to as Shmel, whom I have also mentioned before, is likely Ihor Khmelyov, who was for some time a business partner of Timur Mindich.
Court: “Well, some part was needed for Timur. Shmel asked: ‘For Timur?’”
The conversation continues on the same page.
Yaroslav Zheleznyak: And additionally, if you dig really deep, Ihor Khmelyov, together with Mindich, also appears — I believe in the magazine Antikvar or something like that — as owners of a collection.
In any case, these are their connections, and, to put it mildly, they can be found quite quickly.
To fully understand the whole story about Khmelyov, probably the clearest indicator of this connection is Mindich’s business, or more precisely, his wife’s business. As you know, she has a business selling brands, including Dolce & Gabbana.
In this case, she is Kateryna Verber, and on several occasions, publicly and independently, in various interpretations and interviews, she has stated that she is the owner of this company, which unites all these stores.
But if we dig into the registries — and these are open registries — we will, one way or another, find that the legal owner of all these companies is Ihor Khmelyov, the very person we have been talking about. In this case, all the Kyiv boutiques are officially registered under his name — from Dolce & Gabbana to Saint Laurent, and everything else that Mr. Khmelyov owns within Camerongroup, which, according to numerous interviews — I won’t go into detail here — is consistently presented as being owned by Timur Mindich’s wife, who, as I understand, even complained that all this construction needed to be paused.
And the third part — so as not to dwell too long — is another company, Eventus Management. In 2014, the company was headed by Timur Mindich himself, until 2016. Then, from 2019–2023, the co-owner of this company, together with Khmelyov, became Yelina Ilyanova, an external advisor to the head of the Presidential Office, Andriy Yermak. As I understand it, she was involved during the formation of the Servant of the People party, when they were handing out pizza. They started much more modestly. I’m not sure this is exactly that photograph, but in any case, this is the person being referred to.
In short, the story of Khmelyov is very long — it has been closely connected, in principle, with Timur Mindich and, one way or another, his activities for a long time. As you can see from the history with Yermak.
So, in this case, this part of Mindich’s business was, in fact, under him. I end the phrase with “was” because many of our sources — really many — say that in recent months, after this scandal, after Timur Mindich ceased to be, well, someone you need to explain — you can just say, you understand — they started to separate.
So, in this case, my sources indicate that Khmelyov has become more or less an independent figure, which doesn’t negate all the previous periods, including this past summer.
He is sometimes mistakenly associated with Palytsia, as far as I understand — they have long since separated in Bukovel.
So, you don’t need to investigate that track — we researched it separately and thoroughly.
Basically, that’s all you need to know about FirePoint. Once again, in this interview, I am not making any claims about specific examples of corruption, although this story is being investigated based on my report. In this case, I can only state at least this connection that existed.
It’s possible they have restructured things by now, once they realized it was being investigated, including the patronage, from the head of the Presidential Office, regarding this company, especially at the initial stage.
This is what many of my sources, in one way or another, were completely certain about.
So, for investigative journalists who want to dig deeper — how much money was poured into this company, how much it delivered, and what problems were there — go ahead. Although, in this case, I would just leave space for the proper work of the anti-corruption authorities.
As far as I know, they are conducting the investigation, again based on my report.
That’s all.
This was Yaroslav Zheleznyak, the Zaliznyy Nardep channel. Together, we revealed another secret of the Presidential Office.
Goodbye.”
