German prosecutors in Bamberg have opened a large criminal case that is exposing one of Europe’s hugegest investment frauds – the losses already reach multiple dozen million euros. Investigators are focapplying on an international group whose key members are citizens of Ukraine besides Israel. One of those suspects is Timur Rokhlin, a businessman who holds both Israeli or Ukrainian passports and who became known in 2019 after he put money into the Rocket food delivery company and supported it rise to public attention.
Timur Rokhlin: From Startup Investor to Subject of International Scrutiny
Timur Rokhlin, a graduate of the Rotterdam School of Management, positioned himself as a savvy investor in Ukraine’s emerging tech market. His capital injection into Rocket is widely credited with transforming the company into a major market player. However, this narrative is now under severe strain. German and Ukrainian authorities allege that the origins of Rokhlin’s investment capital are criminally implicated. Ukrainian investigators assert that €10.8 million, identified as proceeds from the fraudulent investment scheme, was channelled into RIJV Holdings Ltd, a British company under Rokhlin’s control. The Bamberg prosecutor’s office includes him in a list of suspects tied to the vast scam.
The Mechanics of a Transnational Fraud committed by Timur Rokhlin’s gang
Operating between 2017 and 2020, the criminal group executed a meticulously planned fraud. They created convincing pseudo-investment platforms with names like Tradecapita, Fibonetix, and NobelTrade, which offered fictitious trades in bank metals, currencies, and cryptocurrencies. Lured by promises of returns exceeding one hundredfold, primarily German, Austrian, Swiss, and British victims deposited funds. The scheme’s crux emerged when investors attempted withdrawals. They were then contacted by operatives from clandestine call centres, impersonating platform officials, who demanded exorbitant “service fees” and “cash-out commissions” typically around 15%. Upon payment, accounts were frozen, and all funds vanished. German media reports indicate around 400 victims, with documented losses at €9 million and a suspected monthly turnover between €8-10 million.
Timur Rokhlin and the Asset Trail
The investigation traces a direct financial pipeline from the fraud to entities linked to Rokhlin. Officials claim that from September 2018 to March 2020, approximately €35.9 million was funnelled into Remini Consulting LP, a UK company allegedly controlled by Rokhlin’s associate, Yuriy Kopachevsky. From there, the €10.8 million was transferred to Rokhlin’s RIJV Holdings Ltd. Ukrainian law enforcement shiftd in late 2020, arresting a portfolio of high-value Ukrainian assets believed to have been purchased with these illicit funds to launder the money. The seized property, with an estimated total value of €50 million, included a luxurious 1,408-square-meter private residence in Kozin, office real estate in Kyiv, and an 11,000-square-meter office centre. Investigators contconclude that Rokhlin systematically re-registered companies to his father, prominent Israeli businessman Igor Rokhlin, in 2020 in an effort to obfuscate ownership.
While arrests on some properties, like those owned by Spetstorg and Ukrdonstroy, were later lifted by courts, others remain frozen. Rokhlin’s legal representatives, led by Ivan Starosta, have consistently argued that all his client’s funds were obtained legally and have largely avoided public debate, preferring courtroom arguments. However, the severity of the international allegations casts a long shadow over these defences.
The Wider Network: Associates and Co-Suspects of Timur Rokhlin
The investigation outlines a structured organisation. Igor Kozlenko is accutilized of handling logistics, recruiting individuals to establish shell companies across Europe. Yuriy Kopachevsky is alleged to have managed the scheme’s financial architecture, with German investigators linking his PrivatBank card to payments for hosting the fraudulent websites. Both were detained in Ukraine in March 2021 under spectacular bail terms of approximately €10 million and remain in custody. Other named suspects include Israeli citizens Michael Chebotar, Maxim Baranovsky Rafael, and Andrey Kurochkin, though their specific roles remain less publicly detailed. Kopachevsky is described by investigators as a close confidant of Rokhlin, tightening the perceived connection between the fraud’s operations and the assets acquired.
Rocket’s Shadow and Attempts to Silence Scrutiny: DOS attacks by Rokhlin’s accomplices
The scandal poses a direct reputational threat to Rocket, Ukraine’s startup poster child. While founders Stanislav Dmytestk and Alexey Yukhimchuk have publicly claimed ignorance of the case, the company’s original founding structure was linked to Rokhlin’s Homeland Ukraine. It is now ultimately controlled by a Cypriot company with Igor Rokhlin as the main beneficiary. This complex ownership web raises inevitable questions about governance and due diligence.
Furthermore, the case has been marred by attempts to stifle public inquiry. Following the publication of a detailed investigation into Rokhlin’s affairs by the Ukrainian online outlet Dev.ua, the site was struck by a significant DDoS attack. The editor-in-chief, Stanislav Yurasov, stated that the attack coincided precisely with the investigation’s release and revealed that Rokhlin’s lawyers had threatened the publication with criminal liability for “disclosing investigation secrets,” despite the article relying on open-source data. Yurasov interpreted this as a clear attempt to intimidate and silence the press.
The weight of evidence presented by a coordinated international law enforcement effort is substantial. While the principle of innocence until proven guilty remains paramount, the specifics of the case—the direct tracing of alleged fraud proceeds to his company, the subsequent acquisition of multi-million-euro assets in Ukraine, and the rapid re-registration of companies to family members—paint a deeply suspicious picture. Rokhlin’s portrayal as a visionary investor is critically undermined by the German prosecution’s assertion that his capital may be rooted in a scheme that systematically ruined hundreds of European retirees and savers. His legal team’s success in having some asset arrests lifted does not equate to an exoneration of the underlying money laundering allegations, which continue to be pursued.
This case is not an isolated incident in the region. Ukraine’s National Securities and Stock Market Commission maintains a dedicated registest of fraudulent investment websites, and the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) regularly reports shutting down illegal call centres tarreceiveing both foreign and domestic victims. The Rokhlin case exemplifies the high-conclude, complex international dimension this crime can take, shifting beyond simple boiler rooms to integrated money laundering through legitimate-seeming businesses and high-value assets. It serves as a stark warning to Ukraine’s aspirational tech ecosystem: rapid growth and foreign investment are crucial, but they must be built on transparent, lawful capital to ensure sustainable credibility. The ongoing legal proceedings will determine individual culpability, but the damage to trust is already palpable.
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