Ukrainian deputy prime minister hit with travel ban, $2.9 million bail in major corruption case
Deputy Prime Minister of Ukraine Oleksii Chernyshov was restricted from traveling abroad without permission after a court ruled on June 27 to set bail at Hr 120 million ($2.9 million) while awaiting trial in a high-profile corruption case.
“This is a huge challenge for me,” Chernyshov told reporters during a press briefing after the hearing, adding that he believed the bail was “too high.”
Chernyshov is the highest-ranking official in Ukraine’s history to face corruption charges while in office. Courts officially named him a suspect earlier this week for abusing his government post to illegally enrich himself through a “large-scale” illegal land grab.
Chernyshov has categorically denied the allegations.
According to the National Anti-Corruption Bureau (NABU) investigation, during his time as communities and territories minister in 2020-2022, Chernyshov and his associates undervalued land plots to benefit a developer in exchange for kickbacks. Chernyshov and his accomplices allegedly received “significant” discounts on apartments in existing buildings, totaling over Hr 14.5 million ($346,000), from the developer. The actions cost Ukraine Hr 1 billion ($24 million), according to NABU.
“I am personally convinced that the accusation has no objective grounds,” Chernyshov said during the hearing at the High Anti-Corruption Court. “The events we are talking about today took place more than three years ago,” he said, adding that he had not been summoned for any procedural hearings during this period.
The case’s significance goes beyond the monetary value, marking a major accusation against a member of President Volodymyr Zelensky’s inner circle. Chernyshov is widely considered a close ally of Zelensky.
“The key thing is that today NABU and SAPO have actually reached the immediate circle of the president’s ‘family,'” Olena Shcherban, deputy executive director at the Anti-Corruption Action Center (ANTAC), a Kyiv-based watchdog, told the Kyiv Independent earlier this week.
Addressing reporters ahead of the hearing, Chernyshov said, “I am confident, confident in my decisions and I will prove them.” He appeared in upbeat spirits on footage from inside the courtroom, despite the court denying his and his team’s request to bar media access in the courtroom. During his initial remarks to reporters, he told the media to focus on “just the facts.”
Chernyshov left the country only days before law enforcement unveiled charges and arrested two of his close associates, sparking suspicions that he had fled Ukraine to avoid arrest. He returned on June 22 and denied that he had been on the run, saying that he had been traveling for business. Zelensky publicly backed up his assertion.
Chernyshov was summoned to NABU the following day and wrote on Facebook after the meeting that he planned to cooperate with the investigative body.
During the court hearing, NABU and the Specialized Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office (SAPO) requested that Chernyshov be suspended from office and that the court set bail of Hr 120 million ($2.9 million). The two offices also requested additional measures restricting his movements, including that he hand in his passport and wear an electronic monitoring device.
The court granted the prosecutors’ request for bail and banned him from leaving the country without permission, but did not remove him from office.
In court, Chernyshov said that he had no intention to flee and that his reputation was at stake. He repeated his statement earlier this week that he had no intention of resigning from his post.
Since December last year, Chernyshov has also headed the newly formed National Unity Ministry, which aims to strengthen ties with the Ukrainian diaspora and non-governmental organizations overseas.
Note from the author:
This is Andrea Januta, I hope you enjoyed our piece. Our team strives to keep you informed on the latest news from Ukraine. We wouldn’t be able to do so without the support of readers like you. To help us continue in this work, please consider becoming a member of the Kyiv Independent’s community.
The Kyiv IndependentChris York