Dubai Uncovered: Two stories of real estate buyers from the restricted registry

This investigation was produced in partnership with the Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project (OCCRP), with support from the Rabochy Ruch initiative and CyberPartisans.

Four properties and Polish sanctions

Dozens of skyscrapers line the artificial canal. Yachts are moored at the docks. The waterfront, which is thick-sown with restaurants and shops, stretches for several kilometers. This is Dubai Marina, one of Dubai’s most prestigious neighborhoods. A 44-story residential tower with a glass facade and panoramic views of the yacht harbor, the bay, and the palm-shaped artificial island rises by the water. The building has an entire floor dedicated to resident amenities, including an infinity pool above the marina, a gym, saunas, steam rooms, a yoga studio, a lounge, game rooms, and a virtual golf simulator. The complex has a 24-hour concierge service, and the beach is within walking distance.

In October 2022, Uladzimir Liashchuk, a Belarusian businessman who is on Poland’s sanctions list, bought an apartment here. He paid nearly $400,000 for the 48-square-meter unit. As of publication, according to the Dubai Land Department, the Belarusian businessman still owns the property.

Liashchuk holds a controlling stake in Steeltrade. [*] [*] This company engages in the wholesale trade of metals and steel products. Steeltrade is registered in Poland. For a year and a half prior to the European Union’s final ban on exporting certain iron and steel products to Russia, the company primarily sold its goods to that market. Liashchuk’s company was expected to lose its main market afterward. However, the Polish National Revenue Administration (Krajowa Administracja Skarbowa, KAS) discovered that the company continued to supply steel products to Russia, circumventing the sanctions. The products were shipped to Kazakhstan, China, and Türkiye. From there, they made their way to the Russian market. This is despite the fact that the justification for the EU sanctions states that these goods could contribute to strengthening the country’s industrial capacity.

Uladzimir Liashchuk has a business partner — Andrei Karpovich of Belarus. In Poland, he holds a controlling stake in OMNI GRP [*] [*] — a company that dealt in steel products, among other things. Liashchuk and Karpovich are connected through their shared field of work, as well as through several companies they jointly owned in Russia. Two of these ventures purchased goods from Steeltrade. The Polish National Revenue Administration determined that Karpovich’s company was involved in a scheme to ship products to Russia via third countries.

In October 2025, Liashchuk and Karpovich, along with their companies Steeltrade and OMNI GRP, were added to Poland’s national sanctions list. The Polish authorities deemed their activities to constitute indirect support of Russia’s military capabilities. Among the goods sold by Steeltrade and OMNI GRP, Poland’s National Revenue Administration singled out high-tech, premium-grade tool steel designed to withstand high temperatures and heavy loads. This type of material is in demand in the defense industry, among other sectors.

“There are grounds to believe that these goods ended up at Russian defense enterprises,” the Polish National Revenue Administration stated.

Andrei Karpovich, like Uladzimir Liashchuk, purchased real estate in Dubai. In 2022, he and his wife bought three properties in the UAE’s largest city, for a total of about $2 million. We do not know whether they still own this real estate.

Karpovich’s priciest purchase was a 117.5-square-meter apartment, which cost him around $820,000. As of this writing, the complex is under construction in the green residential neighborhood of Central Park at City Walk, near downtown Dubai. A large park runs between the residential buildings. Residents have access to swimming pools, a spa, saunas, tennis and squash courts, running tracks, and sports fields. There are also yoga areas.

The businessman’s wife, Natallia Karpovich, also bought an apartment there. The nearly 73-square-meter unit cost her about $482,000. In August 2022, Andrei Karpovich purchased another residential property for approximately $700,000. The nearly 220-square-meter property is located in DAMAC Lagoons, a residential development built around artificial lagoons. [*] [*]

Dubai, Sochi, Sheiman

Another property listed in the Dubai registry is situated on the banks of Dubai Creek, the waterway around which Old Dubai developed. Art Bay, a complex consisting of two buildings with apartments and commercial spaces, is currently under construction in the Culture Village neighborhood. The property is situated right on the waterfront. A promenade lined with restaurants, cafés, and shops runs along Dubai Creek. The developers designed Art Bay’s architecture to complement the cultural district. The facades feature protruding cubic elements inspired by the nearby Jameel Arts Center, a contemporary art facility. The complex boasts a swimming pool, fitness and yoga studios, a theater, and a rooftop arts club. 

The western building, Art Bay West, includes a commercial space measuring more than 140 square meters, purchased by Ukrainian citizen Iryna Bobyr. She paid nearly one million dollars for it. We do not know whether she still owns the property.

Bobyr owns the Cypriot company Rostumel Holding Limited. [*] [*] This company has been mentioned multiple times in BIC investigations into business schemes involving associates of Viktar Sheiman, former head of Lukashenko’s Property Management Department.

In 2023, Iryna Bobyr’s son, Lviv businessman Vitalii Bobyr, had his home searched as part of an investigation into the illegal export of luxury cars from Ukraine to Russia. Among other items, a Rostumel company seal was seized. Later, the BIC discovered that in late 2024, the company had shipped German cars from the Netherlands via St. Petersburg.

As of June 2024, Andrei Svirydau was listed as Rostumel’s CFO. From 2019 to 2021, he served as deputy to Viktar Sheiman at the Belarus President Property Management Directorate. That same year, Rostumel loaned $1.5 million to Komplex-Invest, a company associated with Sheiman’s business empire. This company is building Aleksandr Lukashenko’s presumed first private residence abroad in Sochi, which the BIC covered in fall 2025.

Iryna Bobyr’s business ties to the Belarusian government date back to at least 2011. At that time, the businesswoman’s company became a co-founder of Belferumgroup. One and a half months after its registration, Aleksandr Lukashenko issued a decree granting Belferumgroup the exclusive right, among private companies, to procure scrap and waste ferrous and non-ferrous metals in Belarus.

“A safe inconcrete”

The BIC tried to get comments from the property buyers mentioned in the investigation. Andrei Karpovich and Uladzimir Liashchuk ended the call as soon as they learned what it was about. We were unable to reach Natallia Karpovich or Iryna Bobyr. The reasons why the individuals featured in this investigation chose to purchase real estate in Dubai are unknown. However, the emirate has a lot to offer wealthy foreigners. There is no annual property tax here. Under certain conditions, buying a home may qualify you for a resident visa.

“Real estate allows you to place a large sum relatively quickly in a tangible asset. ... For people with substantial wealth, it is a kind of safe in concrete,” explains Alyona Vandysheva, executive director of Transparency International Russia in Exile.

Investing in Dubai real estate using cryptocurrency is another option. Some developers and real estate agents accept it. You can purchase a property remotely, without traveling to the country. According to the expert, Dubai has become particularly attractive to Russians facing sanctions and restrictions from Western banks since the start of the full-scale war in Ukraine. Vandysheva believes it may also be attractive to Belarusians for the same reasons.

At the same time, identifying real estate owners in Dubai is not easy. The real estate registry does not allow searches by owner name. Additionally, no public registry lists companies’ ultimate beneficial owners. A property can be registered under a company’s name or transferred into a relative’s name. Intermediaries, such as agents, lawyers, and consultants, can help create more complex ownership structures. Thanks to data leaks from Dubai’s closed registry, the BIC identified the buyers of the properties discussed in this investigation. Our team then cross-checked this data with the emirate’s land department.