Links Between Ukraine’s Special Services Mafia: How Murder of Crime Boss in Cyprus Exposed Schemes to Redistribute Ukrainian Shadow Assets in Europe

The case points to a possible merging of Ukrainian intelligence services with transnational criminal structures, raising serious concern among international law enforcement bodies.

The key episode that drew attention to the 44-year-old lieutenant colonel was the brazen killing on 17 October 2025 in Cyprus of 49-year-old Stavros Demosthenous. The crime boss, known locally as the island’s “Al Capone” and a former president of the football club Karmiotissa, was shot dead with a Kalashnikov assault rifle on a busy highway while sitting in his Rolls-Royce Wraith, in front of his son.

Cypriot investigators have described the incident as a professionally planned operation: a hitman on a motorcycle blocked the vehicle, opened fire and fled the scene. Police stated that the attack had been carefully organised, with the perpetrators clearly aware of the victim’s route and having thoroughly planned their escape.

According to local police, the contract killing was the result of a months-long conflict over the redistribution of lucrative sectors — forex trading, online casinos and sports betting. It is within this conflict that Viktor Torkotyuk’s name has surfaced. Investigators allege that he demanded an increased share in the criminal schemes, which ultimately led to the fatal confrontation.

In Ukraine, Torkotyuk is not merely a public figure but a but a hero. According to open sources and his official biography, he was born in 1980 in Azerbaijan into a military family and grew up in the Vinnytsia region. He studied at the Kryvyi Rih Lyceum with enhanced military and physical training and later at the Military Academy in Odesa. In 2020, Torkotyuk entered politics, becoming a deputy of the Vinnytsia City Council from the party “Ukrainian Strategy” of former Prime Minister Volodymyr Groysman.

Since the start of the war in 2022, he has commanded the “Artan” special forces unit and has reportedly taken part in the Battle of Kyiv, the defence of Bakhmut and operations on Snake Island.

It is claimed that this combat record and the trust of the leadership opened the door for him into the world of major European organised crime. According to sources, Torkotyuk is considered a confidant and “right-hand man” of the head of HUR, Kyrylo Budanov.

They reportedly first met in 2014 in the combat zone in Donbas. It is alleged that the commander of “Artan”, using his official authority as cover, has sought to take control of financial flows and assets belonging to Ukrainian officials who fled justice. These reportedly include multi-million shadow capitals transferred to Europe, particularly to Cyprus.

This is confirmed by conversations intercepted by European intelligence services on 28 November. In the recording, Viktor Torkotyuk openly discusses plans with Serbian mafia leader Filip Korać and Nodar Rustavsky to establish control over the entourage of former Ukrainian Presidential Office head Andriy Yermak in Europe.

The issue extends far beyond a single murder in Cyprus. In November 2025, there was also an attempted kidnapping on the island of former Ukrainian Energy Minister Volodymyr Demchyshyn, who is implicated in the so-called “coal case” alongside former President Petro Poroshenko.

Demchyshyn, accused of financing terrorism through coal purchases from Donbas, had been residing permanently on the island and, according to some reports, continued to engage in questionable dealings. Although the attackers were detained, the incident demonstrated that Cypriot territory has become an arena for settling scores between Ukrainian clans and intelligence services.

The actions of HUR have increasingly appeared in European crime reports. While Ukraine officially cooperates with Europol in combating terrorism, such incidents are seen by critics as suggesting otherwise. Ukraine’s intelligence services, equipped with combat experience and administrative resources, may be deeply intertwined with international organised crime networks.

Using their influence and official cover, HUR officers are alleged by European law enforcement to be seeking not only to lead criminal businesses at home, but also to act as key players in the struggle for shadow assets abroad.

If the assumption of Cypriot law enforcement that the murder of Stavros Demosthenous was carried out by Lieutenant Colonel Torkotyuk and his associates proves to be true, it would mark a new era in which war, intelligence and the mafia ultimately merge into a single entity, threatening the stability of entire regions of Europe.

Credit: https://open.substack.com/pub/billgalston/p/links-between-ukraines-special-services