NAZK Graveyard: How the Cases of High-Ranking Corrupt Officials Are Buried

Graveyard of the NACP: how they bury cases of high-ranking corruption officials

Public activists have collected concrete examples of how the National Agency on Prevention of Corruption (NACP) has turned into a paralyzed and fully pro-government body.

Cases showing how NACP closes its eyes to gross violations. Some cases have been sitting for over a year without any decisions - 96% of declarations, whose full checks NACP completed in 2017-2018, were not checked within the statutory deadlines.

NACP deliberately delays deadlines for bringing to account, explaining it by the duration of checks. In reality, cases simply lie dormant, waiting for the one-year term for punishment to expire so they can simply be closed.

No conflict of interest seen in the actions of Kholodnitsky

NACP did not see a conflict of interest in the actions of the head of the Specialized Anti-Corruption Prosecutor's Office Nazar Kholodnytsky, who made a decision in a criminal case in which his friend was a defendant.

In April 2018 the media published a video in which Oleg Lyashko’s assistant Oleksandr Bohachov, together with the mayor of Vyshneve Illya Dikov, offered a bribe to acting Ukrainian Health Minister Uliana Suprun. This case was investigated by NABU.

It turned out that Kholodnytsky had previously worked with Dikov in the Kyiv-Svyatoshinsky district law enforcement system. Later he even prosecuted Dikov as a prosecutor in a personal case, where Dikov, using his connections, achieved the opening of a criminal case against his debtor, where there could be no talk of criminality.

Despite such connections with the defendant, Kholodnytsky personally replaced some and chose other prosecutors for the case in which his longtime colleague Dikov was involved. Such a decision grossly violates the law. Having a conflict of interest, Kholodnytsky was obliged to recuse himself from any decisions concerning this case.

Moreover, in the so-called aquarium recordings published by NABU, it is clearly recorded how the head of SAP gave instructions to a prosecutor on how to help Dikov avoid responsibility.

A month before NACP’s results, Kholodnytsky again refused to authorize the suspicion against member and former head of the agency Natalia Korchamp. Thus, "not seeing" such an obvious violation, NACP rewarded Kholodnytsky.

Ignored undisclosed Tymoshenko PR in the USA

A year ago, the American firm "Two Paths LLC" hired PR company "Avenue Strategies Global LLC" to represent Yulia Tymoshenko’s interests. It concerned the payment of $390 thousand 2018 for a year of PR.

Directly Tymoshenko’s surname appeared in the official report of the PR company submitted to the U.S. Department of Justice.

The payment of such funds in Tymoshenko’s interests could mean:

they belong to her and this means illegal enrichment, because such an amount did not appear in her declaration

someone gifted Tymoshenko valuable PR services. However, this violates Ukraine’s anti-corruption legislation. Moreover, if this is indeed a generous gift, Tymoshenko did not declare it as well, although she was obliged.

However, at NACP they "did not find" evidence of Tymoshenko's violation of anti-corruption law.

Decided not to establish the origin of undeclared Infiniti in the prosecutor

In autumn 2017 the wife of the deputy prosecutor of Sumy region Serhiy Maslyuk, Angela, got into an accident while driving an Infiniti QX 70.

It turned out that she got into an accident with a car that was not in her husband's declaration. The vehicle officially belonged to Angela Masliuk’s sister, and the wife of the prosecutor had the right to use the car.

Journalists found that although none of the prosecutors’ relatives were engaged in business, two apartments and about ten land plots in Sumy region were registered to them, and the mother of the prosecutor even bought a brand new Mercedes ML 350.

However for NACP all this was not a reason for a full check of Serhiy Masliuk’s declaration. And that his wife rode in an undeclared car, NACP refuted by saying that journalists themselves did not prove that Angela Masliuk used the car not only 2017 year, but also 2016. Questions to the prosecutor at NACP chose not to ask.

Twice ignored higher-than-income expenses of prosecutor Kulyk

The case of illegal enrichment of prosecutor Kostyantyn Kulyk in court since 2016. He is accused of unwarranted acquisition of property worth 2,8 million UAH. In six months the prosecutor spent twice as much as his annual income.

After the case was sent to court, Kulyk was promoted, sent to work in the international department of the General Prosecutor’s Office, and the president awarded him the Order of Merit III degree.

Despite the case sent to court and the NABU providing the agency with full information about illegal enrichment, NACP found no incriminated problems in Kulyk’s declarations for 2015 and 2016 years.

Efforts to punish not for elite housing, but for a dog

Journalists found that head of the Main Investigations Department of the National Police Dmitry But acquired elite property and registered it in his wife’s name, but did not have the corresponding official income.

In particular, 2015 year his wife became the owner of two apartments measuring 91 and 113 square meters in the Novopechersky Lipki residential complex, as well as two garages totaling 36 square meters.

NACP conducted a full check and instead of confirming the illegal enrichment facts found a completely different violation: Dmitry But did not declare a dog.

Moreover, the agency showed persistence in this case and tried to seize the object of violation, i.e., the dog, through the court.

Illegally refused to check the declaration of MP Hlyan’

People’s Deputy Serhiy Hlyan’ from Bloc of Petro Poroshenko "Solidarity" did not indicate in his declaration the year 2015 civil partner Olesya Boyko, who owns three enterprises. Although the law obliges to indicate people who live with the declarant and share household, even if they are not married.

By the way, the owner of Boyko’s firms before being elected a deputy was Hlyan’. This concerns private agricultural enterprise "Demetra", LLC "Granit" and PE "Terra Invest Trade."

However Serhiy Hlyan’ gave in February 2016 a media comment that he has a civil partner who owns a business. Also on social networks one can see joint photos of Serhiy Hlyan’ and Olesya Boyko from 2015.

In addition to two firms, Hlyan’ decided to hide a luxurious Porsche Panamera. As Molodyashni (Miykolaiv) media write, the deputy was repeatedly seen driving such a car. The car is registered to the deputy’s civil partner, Olesya Boyko.

After receiving a request regarding these facts, NACP refused to conduct a full check of Hlyan’s declaration in violation of the Law of Ukraine "On Preventing Corruption."

Refused to investigate servicing UDO for Heletey’s jubilee

Head of the State Protection Department and former Ukrainian Defense Minister Valeriy Heletey systematically involves his subordinates in non-state functions. He often involves them for his own needs as service staff and drivers.

Yes, in September 2017 journalists showed how during the celebration of Heletey’s 50-year anniversary, UDO staff assisted the boss in organizing the celebration: checked VIP guest lists, accepted gifts and flowers, organized parking for invitees. Two soldiers in ceremonial dress even met guests at the entrance.

Journalists also noted that Heletey’s daughter-in-law arrived at the Officers’ House, where the celebration took place, in a car driven by an UDO employee Oleksandr Zubko. In the same car Zubko regularly takes Heletey’s son to school and picks him up.

2016 year Audi Q7 with such numbers was registered to the father-in-law of the general-polkovnik – Oleksandr Popovych. Despite the fact that Heletey’s family uses this elite car, it was not in the UDO chief’s declaration.

Despite all these obvious facts, NACP decided that this was not a violation. However, it is quite clear that Heletey used his position for private purposes. This is prohibited by anti-corruption law. Therefore NACP should have issued a reprimand, recognizing such use of UDO personnel as a violation.

The rector of Taras Shevchenko University was forgiven for lying in the declaration

In the declaration for 2016 year, the rector of Kyiv University named after Taras Shevchenko, Leonid Gubersky, indicated that he and his wife owned only two real estate objects: an apartment and a garage in Kyiv.

At the same time, as media reported, the rector’s wife owns a land plot of 0,09 hectares located in the village of Mykhailivka-Rubizhivka in the Kyiv region. This information is confirmed by an extract from the state real estate ownership registry.

In addition, Larisa Guberska is the founder of LLC "Advocacy Company VillAR" and is co-founder of LLC "Institute of Legislative Studies". She contributed 112 500 hryvnias to the charter fund of the latter. There is no information about the wife’s shares in Gubersky’s declaration.

NACP decided to excuse such a "carelessness" of the rector, since after submitting the declaration he "remembered" this and wrote a letter to the agency. In it, Gubersky asked to consider his actions unintentional. Apparently NACP fully accepted the "excuse" of carelessness, despite the fact that this position does not comply with the law.

"Did not see" violations in the declaration of the head of Kyiv Administrative Court Pavel Vovk

In May 2017 it became known that NABU detectives conducted a search at a house in Viti-Postova in Kyiv region, which belonged to the ex-wife of the head of Kyiv Administrative Court Pavel Vovk.

It turned out that Pavel Vovk 2015 years divorced from his wife, but subsequently lived with her and used all assets registered on her.

This concerns a residential building of 127,4 sq. m. and a land plot of 0,1597 hectares. This became a ground for NABU to investigate for filing inaccurate data in the declaration and for Vovk’s illegal enrichment.

Detectors established that the couple divorced in 12 May 2015, however in 2015-2016 the years Vovk and his ex-wife traveled abroad together.

Parallel to this, NACP conducted a full check of Vovk’s declarations. However, it approved a decision of no violations.

Believed that 88-year-old grandmother of the prosecutor drives an Audi Q7

Journalists found that the former deputy head of the department for investigations of particularly important matters in the economic sphere of the General Prosecutor’s Office Dmitry Sus constantly used an off-road vehicle Audi Q7, but did not include it in his declaration.

The car is registered to a resident of Khmelnytskyi Maria Yurchik 1930 year of birth — grandmother of Dmitry Sus.

These facts became the basis for NABU to investigate a criminal case against Sus for making inaccurate data in the declaration.

In May 2018 the case was sent to court along with other crimes in which Sus is accused. As of today, the case is being heard, evidence is being studied.

However, this did not prevent NACP, which conducted a full check of Sus’s declaration for 2015 year, from not seeing violations in it. Given that Sus’s case is now being heard in court, this NACP decision will be used by Sus’s lawyers to his benefit.

Published on the Black List of NACP project site