Ukraine’s main security agency, the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU), released a statement on Saturday regarding the charges given to the Ukraine billionaire.

Security Service of Ukraine Flag (Photo: wikipedia.com)

Ukraine Billionaire, Ihor Kolomoisky, was handed criminal charges related to money laundering and fraud in his oil and gas holdings. Kolomoisky’s arrest is part of a large anti-corruption drive during the Russian invasion which included targeting and seizing illegally acquired assets from oligarchs and high rank figures.

According to Jurist, it was reported that the Shevchenkivsyi District Court of Kyiv ordered the Ukraine billionaire to be held until the end of October. Kolomoisky was allowed bail in excess of 14 million dollars as long as he fulfills a number of conditions, like not traveling abroad.

The SBU said that the Ukraine billionaire is alleged to have laundered over half a billion Ukraine gryvna between 2013 and 2020 by taking advantage of the banks that he controls over. He controlled Ukrtanfta, a Ukrainian oil company before it was seized by the government after the company missed taxes that amounted to over 80 million dollars in 2022. PrivatBank was also co-owned by the Ukraine billionaire but was nationalized in 2016 after 5.5 billion dollars of missing funds.

Ivan Bakanov, the head of SBU, released a statement that highlighted how damaging domestic corruption is on Ukraine’s economy during the war with Russia. Saying that the aggressors do not necessarily have to seize territory, it is enough to undermine economy, creating obstacles for strategic enterprises, encouraging corruption, smuggling, etc.

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The anti-corruption drive also included a focus on officials abusing their powers and signing profitable contracts to private entities, especially in the agricultural sector, which has caused massive state losses and has increased prices for consumers during the war with Russia.

According to Al Jazeera, the court has placed the Ukraine billionaire under arrest for two months over fraud and money laundering charges as part of the country’s crackdown on corruption. On Saturday, the court has given the Ukraine billionaire the option of posting bail.

The decision of the court has caught many people by surprise as the Ukraine billionaire is one Ukraine’s most high profile, richest oligarch in the country. Early Saturday, the country’s main security agency, has named the Ukraine billionaire as a suspect in the criminal investigation.

The Ukraine billionaire is seen as one of the class oligarchs who has amassed a huge industrial wealth ager the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991. He also have wielded outsize political and economic influence. 

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