The National Anti-corruption Bureau of Ukraine (NABU) has said it closed a case on illegal enrichment of Odesa Mayor Hennadiy Trukhanov, as well as a number of other cases involving facts of illegal enrichment of officials and judges.
“Contrary to moral convictions, pursuant to the decision of the Constitutional Court, which actually legalized illegal enrichment in Ukraine, NABU detectives began to close criminal proceedings under article 368-2 of Ukraine’s Criminal Code. Among the already closed cases are cases of illegal enrichment of officials and judges, including the Odesa mayor,” NABU said on Facebook on March 6.
NABU said Trukhanov “is already accused of embezzling Hr 185 million from the city budget.” That case is being heard in the Odesa Malynivsky District Court.
“The decision of the Constitutional Court to declare unconstitutional article 368-2 does not have anything to do with this court case, since an official is accused of a corruption offense under another article, Part 5 of Article 191 of Ukraine’s Criminal Code. NABU detectives also continue to investigate other facts of possible illegal activities by Trukhanov,” the statement said.
NABU’s statement said the decision of the Constitutional Court forces detectives to close 65 criminal proceedings, but only in terms of illegal enrichment.
The Specialized Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office (SAPO) told Interfax-Ukraine that it would check the legality of the closure of this case proceeding.
“Yes, the case proceeding is closed under this article, but we will establish the legality of closing the cases,” SAPO said.
As reported, the Constitutional Court of Ukraine has issued a ruling in the case on a constitutional motion filed by 59 Members of Parliament of Ukraine regarding the compliance (constitutionality) of Article 368-2 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine with the Constitution of Ukraine. By this ruling, the Court recognized that Article 368-2 of the Criminal Code does not comply with the Constitution of Ukraine, i.e. it is unconstitutional.
