Anti-Corruption Court begins hearing on preventive measure for Zelenskyy's former chief of staff Yermak

The High Anti-Corruption Court of Ukraine has begun a hearing on a preventive measure for Andrii Yermak, former head of the Office of the President, in a case concerning the alleged laundering of UAH 460 million (around US$10.5 million) through a high-end construction project outside Kyiv.

Source: court livestream; Ukrainian public broadcaster Suspilne from the courtroom

Details: Upon arriving at the court, Yermak said he expected "a fair and honest trial". When asked whether he still influences decisions in the President's Office after leaving his post, Yermak replied that he "does not comment on media campaign leaks".

The court decided that no preventive measure would be imposed on Yermak on Tuesday and that only part of the case materials submitted by prosecutors would be reviewed. However, a preventive measure must be chosen within 72 hours from the moment suspicion was officially announced.

Yermak's lawyer, Ihor Fomin, stated that the case consists of 16 volumes of 250 pages each, meaning the defence had not been able to fully review the materials. For this reason, they requested the hearing be postponed.

A prosecutor from the Specialised Anti-Corruption Prosecutor's Office (SAPO) also said that part of the evidence could not be disclosed in open court.

During the hearing, the prosecution stated, among other things, that from July 2020 until August 2022 Yermak's authorised representative in the Dynastiia ("Dynasty") housing complex construction was his father, Borys Yermak. This is confirmed by messages. After August 2022, another individual took over this role.

It also emerged during the hearing that the participants referred to the construction project as "the Big Construction".

Background:

• The National Anti-Corruption Bureau of Ukraine (NABU) and SAPO conducted investigative actions in regard to Andrii Yermak on the evening of 11 May.
• Later, Yermak was formally served with a notice of suspicion in a case concerning the alleged laundering of UAH 460 million during the construction of the Dynastiia housing complex. According to investigators, some of the funds used for the construction may have originated from corruption schemes at Energoatom.
• The prosecution is seeking a preventive measure for Yermak in the form of detention with the alternative of posting bail of UAH 180 million (US$4 million).

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