The High Anti-Corruption Court of Ukraine has arrested the former head of the Supreme Court Vsevolod Knyazev, he is suspected of taking a bribe of $1.8 million for the decision in the case of the Poltava mining and processing plant Ferrexpo, which was taken on April 19. A pledge of 107 million 360 thousand hryvnias has also been announced, the Ukrainian media Grati reports .
According to investigators, Knyazev received the first part of the $1.35 million bribe on May 3, then another $450,000 was given to him on May 15, when he was detained. The National Anti-Corruption Bureau of Ukraine (NABU) reported that 900 thousand dollars were to be received by intermediaries – lawyer Oleg Goretsky and notary Kiril Gorburov, through whom the bribe was transferred. The court also arrested the lawyer Horetsky with the possibility of bail – 80 million hryvnia.
Investigative journalist Mikhail Tkach told The Insider that this is probably not the last high-profile detention in Ukraine, but such a case should set a precedent for anyone who wants to "become a millionaire in the service of society." According to him, during Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine, some Ukrainian officials believe that now "is not up to them." However, NABU showed that this was a mistake.
On May 15, NABU and the Specialized Anti-Corruption Prosecutor's Office of Ukraine (SAP) charged Knyazev with a large bribe, reporting on the discovery of "large-scale corruption" in the Supreme Court.
