Ukraine's prosecutor general Kravchenko signs notice of suspicion against NABU head

Prosecutor General Ruslan Kravchenko has signed a notice of suspicion against Semen Kryvonos, Head of the National Anti-Corruption Bureau of Ukraine (NABU), and accused NABU and the Specialised Anti-Corruption Prosecutor's Office (SAPO) of seizing materials from criminal proceedings against their heads during searches conducted as part of Operation Carthage.

Source: Kravchenko on a video address

Quote: "Operation Carthage was aimed not only at me. Its real purpose was to gain access to materials from the criminal proceedings concerning NABU and SAPO officials and employees and then remove the prosecutor general and halt the adoption of procedural decisions in these cases."

"As of today, the Prosecutor General's Office is providing procedural oversight in dozens of criminal proceedings investigating serious and particularly serious crimes committed by NABU and SAPO employees... Based on the evidence gathered, I have signed a notice of suspicion against NABU Head Semen Kryvonos."

Details: Kravchenko said that during searches at the Prosecutor General's Office's premises, NABU and SAPO officials gained access to legally protected case materials. Some documents and electronic data were allegedly copied and stolen.

In particular, Kravchenko suspects Kryvonos of falsifying documents to obtain unlawful benefits on a particularly large scale and arranging a sham adoption to create grounds for avoiding liability in court.

The second notice of suspicion concerns a person close to SAPO Head Oleksandr Klymenko. This person is accused of influencing judges of the High Anti-Corruption Court, offering them unlawful benefits and helping them evade military mobilisation. According to Kravchenko, these criminal proceedings were the reason for the "night-time raid" on the Prosecutor General's Office during the searches.

Meanwhile, Kravchenko commented on his decision to resign as Prosecutor General as follows: "This deliberate political decision does not constitute an admission of any wrongdoing, result from any deal or mean that I am giving up the ongoing fight to defend my reputation and integrity."

He said he would not allow his resignation to be used to halt all criminal proceedings, conceal or destroy evidence, or allow "those whose actions it has been investigating" to establish control over the prosecution service.

He also stated that a person close to SAPO Head Oleksandr Klymenko had been served with a notice of suspicion for influencing the head of the High Anti-Corruption Court, offering him an unlawful benefit and helping him evade military mobilisation.

Kravchenko also noted that a targeted information campaign is being waged against the Prosecutor General's Office.

Background:

• On 4 September, Ukrainska Pravda reported that NABU and SAPO were conducting searches at the premises of Prosecutor General Ruslan Kravchenko, his deputy Mariia Vdovychenko and Oleh Kiper, Head of Odesa Oblast Military Administration.
• On 5 September, the Prosecutor General's Office confirmed that NABU detectives had conducted searches at office premises "used by Kravchenko".
• Also on 5 September, NABU and SAPO announced that they had uncovered a criminal organisation which investigators said is run by the head of a department at the prosecutor general's office. Members of the organisation are suspected of regularly taking bribes from scam call centres and money laundering.
• On 7 September, amid the NABU and SAPO investigation into the "protection racket" involving call centres, Ruslan Kravchenko submitted his resignation as prosecutor general.
• As Ukrainska Pravda previously reported, representatives of the Prosecutor General's Office may have received approximately US$7,000 per month from each sham call centre.

This news has been updated since publication.

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