The American missionary announced the loss of $400,000 and a house for charity projects in Kyiv due to fraud

American missionary and philanthropist Kim Kio Yok, who has been working in Ukraine for more than 30 years, announced the alleged fraud during the purchase of a house in Kyiv for the activities of the charity fund and the "Blagodat" church, as a result of which the organization lost the opportunity to fully provide assistance to internally displaced persons, pensioners and other vulnerable categories of the population.

As the managing partner of the law firm said during a press conference at the Interfax-Ukraine agency Revealing Information Oleksandr Keer, in 2022 Kim Kyo Yok agreed to purchase a building in the Darnytsky district of Kyiv, however, instead of the main sales contract, a contract of intent to conclude such a contract was concluded. According to the lawyer, at the time of the agreement, the real estate was pledged due to the debts of the family of the previous owner, and the initial payment was $30,000.

"In 2022, $30,000 was transferred as a pledge and confirmation of the reality of the intention to purchase this property. From 2022 to today, the amount of funds received has increased from $30,000 to $400,000, and in fact, 21 agreements on postponement of the main sales contract were concluded. The last two additional agreements were concluded when the party did not even have the opportunity to sell the property, because it did not own it," Keer said at a press conference at the Interfax-Ukraine agency on Wednesday.

According to him, due to outstanding previous obligations of the person who was supposed to sell the house, the ownership of the property passed to the creditors, so it became impossible to fulfill the initial agreements. At the same time, according to the lawyer, Kim Kyo Yok actually transferred almost the entire agreed value of the object, but did not take possession of it.

Kheer said that after the appeal of the benefactor, the lawyers initially tried to settle the situation through negotiations and mediation, but it was not possible to reach an agreement with the other party. After that, appeals to the police and the prosecutor's office, as well as civil lawsuits regarding disputed contracts and refunds were prepared.

“When Mr. Kim approached us, the first thing we proposed was to hold negotiations and mediation to clarify the circumstances and try to reach an agreement. On repeated attempts to hold such a meeting, we were told that there was no reason or purpose for it. After that, we prepared statements to the police and the prosecutor's office, as well as civil lawsuits for the return of funds," he added.

Keer noted that, according to the victim's assessment, the case has a judicial perspective, since the transfer of funds and changes in arrangements were documented by signed agreements. He also reported that the benefactor actually used the building for some time, invested in its improvement and purchased equipment, but now, according to his representatives, he does not have access to this property.

He noted that the prosecutor's office of Darnytskyi district has opened criminal proceedings, and the pre-trial investigation is ongoing. The lawyer also positively assessed the prompt reaction of the court to the appeal of the representatives of the injured party, but noted that since May, the case has not yet ended with the notification of suspicion or the transfer of the indictment to the court.

For his part, Kim Kyo Yok said that he came to Ukraine from California 33 years ago and during that time was engaged in religious, educational and charity projects. After the start of the full-scale war, he, together with like-minded people, helped people whose homes were damaged, handed over food kits and firewood, and also organized free meals for internally displaced persons in Kyiv.

"We helped Ukrainians who suffered greatly during the full-scale war: we found damaged houses, helped to rebuild them, provided people with food packages and firewood so that they could survive winter We fed 150 to 200 internally displaced persons with hot lunches in a building in the Darnytsia district. Because of this situation, in recent months, people have not been able to receive the help we provided before," said Kim Kio Yok.

Kim Kio Yok, an American charitable missionary, a victim in criminal proceedings

The missionary said that as a US citizen, he applied with an official letter to the US Embassy in Ukraine and to the American consul.

We applied with an official letter to the US Embassy. They responded and are interested in this case because I am a US citizen. I have also asked the US consul to help me in this situation," Kim Kyo-yok said.

People who used to receive regular aid, he said, continue to call the organization's representatives and ask when the free lunches and other programs will resume. The missionary emphasized that he intends to stay in Ukraine and continue his charitable activities.

Kim Kio Yok noted that the organization does not work only in Kyiv, over the 33 years of its activity, centers were created in various cities of Ukraine, in particular, rehabilitation programs were created for people with drug and alcohol addiction. The "Blagodat" gymnasium also operates with kindergarten and education up to the 11th grade, and the building purchased in Kyiv was planned to be used, among other things, for educational projects.

"Now I am 75 years old, and I want to help Ukrainians and serve them with love even during the war. We appeal to law enforcement agencies, the police and the prosecutor's office: help us so that we can work again on the territory of Ukraine. We dedicated our lives to serving Ukraine and the Ukrainian people," he said.

For her part, volunteer of the charitable foundation Viktoriya Khlebnikova noted that the consequences of the conflict surrounding the building concern not only the foundation itself, as professional kitchen equipment purchased specifically to feed people for free remained in the premises.

"For us, this story is very painful, because this is not a question of the house, equipment, or money. The most painful thing is that we cannot help people in full, as we did before. "Professional equipment was not purchased for business and not for profit - it was purchased for charitable activities to feed people," Khlebnikova said.

She noted that during massive power outages, such dinners were of particular importance for people who could not cook at home. For now, she said, the team is trying to get access to their property and resume work.

“People are waiting, they meet me on the street and every time they ask when we will start helping again. We want to return to normal work, prepare dinners, help the elderly, children and families who lost their defenders at the front," added the volunteer.

For his part, the vice president of the Grace international mission, pastor Kim Shine, who joined the press conference from the USA, said that the American organization financially supported the activities of Kim Kyo Yok and his family in Ukraine and helped with the purchase of premises. According to him, after the outbreak of full-scale war, the mission offered the missionaries to return to the US for security reasons, but they decided to stay.

“When they reported that they had found a building where they could support the elderly and prepare food for the displaced, we decided to help financially with its purchase. Now we are turning to the Ukrainian authorities so that this case is resolved legally and the activity can continue," Kim Shine emphasized.