The National Anti-Corruption Bureau of Ukraine, or NABU, suspects a former lawmaker of filing a false income declaration, it said on Nov. 19.
The investigators haven’t disclosed the former official’s name, but according to online newspaper Ukrainska Pravda’s sources, this suspect is Denys Dzenzerskyi, a lawmaker who was twice elected to the Ukrainian parliament, the Verkhovna Rada.
Dzenzerskyi used to be a lawmaker for ex-Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko’s Batkivshchyna party in 2012 and for People’s Front in 2014. He also served as the secretary and deputy head in the parliamentary finance and banking committee.
NABU suspects the lawmaker of failing to declare a $190 million financial commitment to several Ukrainian banks.
The Kyiv Post couldn’t reach Dzenzerskyi for comment.
Dzenserzkyi is one of several lawmakers of the previous convocation that face criminal cases. Among others are ex-President Petro Poroshenko’s former top ally Oleksandr Hranovsky, a People’s Front ex-lawmaker Serhiy Pashynsky, head of the Radical Party Oleh Lyashko, developer Maksym Mykytas, and Kostyantyn Zhevago.
In 2017, Dzenzerskyi was the subject of an investigation by investigative journalism project Bihus.info, which also accused him of not declaring business assets and financial commitments. He previously denied any wrongdoing.
NABU claims to have investigated the case since January 2017, and that year NABU – along with the Special Anti-Corruption Prosecution Office – requested the parliament to lift Dzenzerskyi’s immunity so he could be prosecuted. The General Prosecutor’s Office denied the request, saying that the case needed improvement.
At the beginning of 2018, the National Agency for Preventing Corruption reported to NABU about check-ups on Dzenzerskyi’s 2015 and 2016 declarations, which revealed the undeclared financial commitment. In addition, the agency said that Dzenzerskyi hasn’t provided evidence for legal grounds by which he acquired a $1.3 million present, which he declared in 2015.
Prosecutor’s Office abruptly closed the case in July 2018, providing a vague explanation regarding the interpretation of the term “financial commitment.” However, NABU disagreed and planned to appeal the decision.
The case appears to have been reopened. Now that Dzenzerskyi no longer has parliamentary immunity, investigators were able to send him a notice of suspicion.
If found guilty, the former official may face up to $2,100 in fines, 240 hours of community service or two years in prison.
