The former President of Ukraine’s leading engine producer Motor Sich, Viacheslav Bohuslaiev, will face trial for treason, Ukrayinska Pravda reported on October 18.

The Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) and the Prosecutor General's Office (PGO) have completed an investigation and submitted an indictment against him and Oleh Dziuba, the director of the company's Department of Foreign Trade. Both are suspected of collaborating with Russia after the war started last February.

The investigation found that the management of the Zaporizhzhia-based plant established illegal transnational channels for supplying Ukrainian aircraft engines and their spare parts to Russia, contributing to the Kremlin’s war effort.

Motor Sich’s management colluded with representatives of the Russian corporation Rostech, which has close ties to the Kremlin and is a major producer of weapons for Russian occupying forces.

Motor Sich is a jewel in Ukraine’s industrial crown and was almost sold to Chinese investors before the war, until the deal was squashed by US pressure, worried about the military implications of handing over the companies well respected technology to China. Ownership of the company was eventually taken over by the state in March 2021.

The GPO claims Motor Sich provided engines and parts that were used by Russia to produce and repair helicopters, which played a significant role in the full-scale invasion of Ukraine. Additionally, it was uncovered that Bohuslaiev deliberately obstructed the delivery of a helicopter to Ukraine's Chief Intelligence Directorate in April 2022. He instructed subordinates to disassemble the aircraft and hide its operational documentation.

Bohuslaiev was arrested and is now facing charges under four articles of the Criminal Code of Ukraine. Furthermore, all property belonging to the accused, estimated at around $314mn, has been seized. This includes funds, real estate, corporate rights and properties acquired through criminal means and transferred to relatives abroad.

Both Bohuslaiev and Dziuba were detained by the SBU in October 2022. In May 2023, it was reported that Bohuslaiev, who is 84 years old, had sought inclusion in a list for exchange with Russia due to his poor health and limited options for release.