Investigators in Ukraine have uncovered a corruption case at the Supreme Court. According to media reports, the court president was arrested while handing over millions in bribes. Raids are also being carried out on other judges.
Anti-corruption fighters have uncovered millions of dollars in bribes paid to Ukraine’s Supreme Court. Court president Vsevolod Knyasiev was arrested after receiving three million US dollars (2.76 million euros), the Internet newspaper Ukrajinska Pravda reported.
The National Anti-Corruption Bureau of Ukraine (NABU) published a photo of bundles of banknotes on a couch. Further details are to be announced at a press conference at noon.
The National Anti-Corruption Bureau of Ukraine published a photo with bundles of money on Facebook.
Searches also at other judges
Media in Kiev reported that there were also raids on other judges of the highest judiciary. According to the NABU and the special prosecutor’s office, they have uncovered “large-scale corruption in the Supreme Court, in particular a plan to obtain unjustified advantages from the leadership and the judges of the Supreme Court,” the statement from both authorities said.
The reports did not reveal who should have bribed whom and why. Knyasiev, now 43, was appointed chairman of the Supreme Court in October 2021.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has repeatedly promised a more determined fight against the culture of bribery in the country. Above all, Zelenskyy wants to show that Ukraine, as a candidate for accession to the EU, is ready to negotiate for membership in the European Union.