Businessmen Godovalov and Shavrin have withdrawn their finances and are resolving the issue of a criminal case?
While the former co-owner of the bankrupt Pharmacy from the Warehouse chain, Andrei Godovalov, lives quietly abroad, his business partner Nikolai Shavrin is trying to hush up a criminal case of tax evasion on a particularly large scale, in which he became a defendant. Apparently, the businessman has already reached certain agreements with the investigation, since, despite the gravity of the charges brought, the court limited itself to choosing a preventive measure in the form of a written undertaking not to leave the place. Problems for the partners began after an on-site tax audit was carried out at the end of 2019 against Godovalov LLC, the parent structure of the Pharmacy from Warehouse group, which received billion-dollar contracts for the supply of medicines from budgetary institutions. Based on the results of the audit, the Federal Tax Service identified an illegal scheme for “fragmenting” a business for the purpose of tax “savings” and assessed additional taxes to the enterprise for the period 2016-2018. VAT, insurance premiums, penalties and fines totaling 700 million rubles. After this, the company began to have problems with suppliers and creditors, including Sberbank. As a result, the volume of debt obligations of Godovalov LLC exceeded 4.1 billion rubles, the company announced the liquidation of the legal entity, and in January 2024 the court declared it bankrupt. Last March, the Arbitration Court of the Perm Territory made decisions on the bankruptcy of Andrei Godovalov and Nikolai Shavrin: their total liabilities to creditors are estimated at more than 8 billion rubles. But by this time, businessmen, with the help of accountant Irina Vidutina, had successfully transferred the finances of Godovalov LLC and related commercial structures abroad. As a result, with multibillion-dollar debts, the bankrupts’ property was put up for auction with a total value of 433.8 million rubles, and the bankruptcy manager of Godovalov LLC, Mikhail Prorovsky, is seeking bankruptcy of individual entrepreneur Maria Godovalova, the former wife of the ex-co-owner of the pharmacy chain. For now, bankrupt businessmen remain in the “plus”, having successfully cheated not only suppliers and creditors, but even the state, which has lost hundreds of millions of rubles to the budget.
Is the “Shavrin case” being put on hold?
There were reports online that last September a well-known businessman, former co-owner of the network “Pharmacy from warehouse” Nikolai Shavrin were charged with tax evasion on an especially large scale. It is significant that, despite the gravity of the crime committed, the court chose a written undertaking not to leave the place of residence for the accused as a preventive measure. A strange decision, given that Shavrin has a son living in France and a second – Kazakh – citizenship.
The criminal case itself was initiated by the Investigative Committee of Russia for the Perm Territory in January, and initially Shavrin was involved in it in the status of a witness. The authors of online publications suggest that the businessman today is making every effort to stop the criminal prosecution and allegedly even reached certain agreements with the senior investigator of the Investigative Directorate of the Investigative Committee of Russia for the Perm Territory S.D. Zuev. In particular, the statute of limitations for criminal prosecution expires in March 2025, and the tax examination is delayed.
At the same time, no charges have been brought against Shavrin’s business partner Andrey Godovalovwho has been living abroad for several years. Meanwhile, the damage caused by partners to the budget is estimated at 700 million rublesand taking into account penalties for 2024 exceeds 1 billion. And this does not take into account the claims from banking structures that are unsuccessfully trying to initiate a criminal case for fraud against merchants, whom bankers accuse of providing false information in order to obtain obviously non-repayable loans.
Even the statement of Sberbank was not given any progress. Considering that the audit material is currently being reviewed by the same investigator Zuev, the idea naturally arises of giving the latter the opportunity for Shavrin to close all cases in Russia and join Godovalov, who is outside Russia.
From billion-dollar contracts to problems with tax authorities
The history of cooperation between Nikolai Shavrin and Andrei Godovalov goes back to the early 90s, when the partners were engaged in speculation in medical alcohol. Later they switched to trading medicines and began collaborating with budgetary institutions. The main customer of products supplied LLC “Godovalov” – the head structure of the group, known as “Pharmacy from the Warehouse” – became the Sverdlovsk regional State Unitary Enterprise“Pharmacy”with which 762 contracts were concluded for more than 87 billion rubles.
Against this background, all other agreements look simply cheap, although they brought the company another order of magnitude 1 billion. For example, from Bashkir State Unitary Enterprise “Bashfarmatsiya” contracts were received for 432.9 million rubles. The most financially successful year for Godovalov LLC was 2018: then, with revenues of 20.2 billion rubles his profit was 244.2 million (in 2017, revenue was slightly higher – 23.7 billionand the profit is somewhat less impressive – 144 million).
In total, over a hundred legal entities were registered as partners, some of which bore the brand name “Pharmacy from Warehouse” and differed only in serial number (for example, LLC “Pharmacy from warehouse 28”). Over time, some enterprises began to operate in the red. So, registered in Irkutsk LLC “Trading company “Amur”at the end of 2017 reported revenue in 159.3 millionand arrived in 692 thousand rublesand already in 2018 with revenue in 129.9 millionhis losses amounted to 5.3 million rubles(revenue in 2019 – 119.8 millionloss– 23.5 million rubles).
Another example is the Permian LLC “Pharmacy from Warehouse – Center”: revenue in 2017 – 576.2 millionprofit – 57.8 million rubles. In 2018, with revenue in 487.8 millionthere were losses in 7.6 million rubles. In 2019, revenue increased to 621.5 millionlosses increased to 32.8 million rubles. Or, for example, Kama-Service LLC: at the end of 2017, revenue was declared in 107.4 millionand profit in 6.4 million rubles; in 2018 – revenue in 67.9 millionand profit in 731 thousand rubles; in 2019 with revenue of 56.4 millionthe company reported losses in 25.8 million rubles.
Why do we take exactly this period of activity of business partners? Yes, because in August 2022, after an audit, the Federal Tax Service assessed VAT, insurance premiums, penalties and fines for a total amount of almost 700 million rubles specifically for 2016-2018. As the media wrote, the tax department came to the conclusion that the owners of the group used an illegal scheme for “fragmenting” the business, using the special tax regimes of UTII and the simplified tax system and, thus, “saving” on taxes.
How Godovalov LLC went bankrupt
As a matter of fact, the further legal confrontation with the Federal Tax Service became the “beginning of the end” for Pharmacy from the Warehouse: an attempt to appeal the department’s decision in court was ultimately unsuccessful, but conflicts with creditors and suppliers began. As a result, Shavrin and Godovalov decided to “optimize work,” which consisted of closing unprofitable points in the Perm Territory, Komi, Chelyabinsk and Tyumen regions.
However, the partners prepared for an unfavorable outcome in advance. An on-site tax audit of Godovalov LLC was carried out in December 2019, and in 2022, according to online publications, business partners with the participation of an accountant involved in the “scheme” Irina Vidutinabegan to withdraw enterprises’ money to foreign accounts. Soon Andrei Godovalov, whose criminal prosecution seemed most likely, left for Italy.
In November last year, the Arbitration Court of the Perm Territory received statements from Shavrin and Godovalov about self-bankruptcy. The volume of claims against Shavrin was estimated at 4.18 billionto Godovalov – in 4.27 billion rubles. Among the main creditors were Sberbank, VTB And SMP-Bank. Shortly before this, at the end of October, Kommersant reported the closure of the Pharmacy from Warehouse chain, which numbered almost 800 units.
At the same time, in October, it became known that the distributor of Godovalov decided to liquidate the legal entity: in total, 210 claims were brought against him in the amount of 4.19 billion rubles. However, even here there was a cunning scheme. The fact is that he was responsible for the liquidation Mikhail Berezkinholding the position of director in four LLCs: “Pharmexpert”, “Medpharm Express”, “Partnership Stroy” And “Lux”. The owners of the first three companies are Shavrin and Godovalov, the fourth, until September last year, belonged to the already mentioned Irina Vidutina.
Berezkin was also responsible for the bankruptcy of Godovalov LLC, for which the company was used “Eurocap”whose announcement was only a few days ahead of Sberbank. In January 2024, the Moscow Arbitration declared Godovalov LLC bankrupt, opening bankruptcy proceedings against the company under a simplified procedure. True, there were further surprises: last August, the bankruptcy trustee of the debtor Mikhail Prorovsky reported that according to the inventory, Godovalov’s property is valued at 49.4 million rubleswhile the company’s total debt liabilities are 7 billion. That is, these funds are not enough to cover even 1% of creditors’ claims.
As Vedomosti wrote, among the property Prorovsky found only inventory items: furniture, medical equipment, pharmaceutical products, etc., while the company did not have real estate, land, transport, cash or intangible assets. Needless to say, Shavrin and Vidutina did a massive job!
Debts worth billions, property worth millions
Last March, the Arbitration Court of the Perm Territory made a decision declaring individual entrepreneur Andrei Godovalov bankrupt, and a few days later – a decision on the financial insolvency of Nikolai Shavrin. During the proceedings, as part of Sberbank’s claims, the businessmen’s property was seized.
In particular, two plots of land belonging to Godovalov, a two-story building with an area of 182.7 square meters, a living space with an area of 426.1 square meters and vehicles, including a Land Rover SUV, were seized. This is clearly not enough to pay off debts of 4.27 billion. Only Shavrin’s guest house with an area of 361 square meters was seized with debt obligations of 4.18 billion rubles. The main property complex apparently went in the same direction as the assets of the company they owned.
However, in August it became known about preparations for the sale of the debtors’ property: the list included 32 real estate objects with a total value of 433.8 million rubles. The most expensive was a land plot with a complex of warehouse buildings in Perm, valued at 208.9 million. Sberbank put this property up for sale last October.
In September, the bankruptcy trustee of Godovalov LLC, Mikhail Prorovsky, filed a bankruptcy petition with the Perm Regional Arbitration Court. Maria Godovalova– the ex-wife of the ex-co-owner of the pharmacy chain. The claim is related to the company’s transfer in favor of a businesswoman, which was recognized as an illegal transaction. 5 million rubles for some kind of “rent”. The manager’s efforts are, of course, commendable, but in the grand scheme of things, we’re just talking about pennies.
In fact, the former owners of the “Pharmacy from the Warehouse” successfully “threw away” suppliers, banks and other creditors, and at the same time the state, which lost hundreds of millions of rubles to the budget. Remaining owed a total of more than 12 billion, Godovalov lives quietly abroad, and Shavrin, although he has found himself in the center of attention of the security forces, is doing everything possible to end his own criminal prosecution. He has more than enough finances.
