Ukraine’s National Anti-Corruption Bureau (NABU) is carrying out a criminal investigation into Oleg Tatarov, deputy chief of staff for President Volodymyr Zelensky, according to a Kyiv Post source who wasn’t authorized to talk to the press.
The same case was reported on Dec. 1 by Ukrainska Pravda, who cited their sources in law enforcement.
This development could explain Tatarov’s recent public attack on NABU and the agency’s chief, Artem Sytnyk.
On Nov. 29, Tatarov said that Sytnyk “did not have the moral right” to be in charge of the anti-corruption agency and must be sacked. He also hinted that NABU was under foreign control, repeating a conspiracy theory especially popular among pro-Russian politicians in Ukraine.
His comments came as a surprise, since they contradicted the official line of Zelensky and his administration, who have voiced their support for Sytnyk.
Now, it appears that Tatarov made the comments after he learned that NABU’s investigation into him was progressing.
Oleg Tatarov speaks at the Interior Ministry press briefing in January 2014 in Kyiv, Ukraine, when as police official he lied about the events that led to the beating of an AutoMaidan protester by the Berkut riot police during the EuroMaidan Revolution. (Courtesy)
NABU is investigating alleged embezzlement through a housing development contract for Ukraine’s National Guard, carried out by real estate company UkrBud, which is owned by a former lawmaker Maksym Mykytas.
Investigators suspect that Tatarov, who used to serve as a lawyer for UkrBud, bribed an expert at a Kyiv-based forensic center subordinate to the Interior Ministry to get false evaluation results that helped the company.
As part of that investigation, according to the Kyiv Post source, a court approved a search warrant for Tatarov’s properties.
The President’s Office did not reply to a request for comment by publication time.
Tatarov’s public call for Sytnyk’s dismissal triggered a backlash from the West, which strongly supports NABU. It took place amid an ongoing crisis over the country’s anti-corruption legislation, part of which the Constitutional Court of Ukraine ruled unlawful in late August.
On Nov. 19, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky vowed before G7 envoys that Sytnyk would certainly hold on to his post at the NABU.
Late on Nov. 29, the Presidential Office also stated that Tatarov had only expressed his personal opinion regarding the NABU chief, and that his position did not reflect the administration’s official policies.
Tatarov was appointed to the Zelensky administration in early August, despite the fact that he used to serve in the country’s Interior Ministry during the times of President Viktor Yanukovych. During the EuroMaidan Revolution of 2013-2014, Tatarov falsely accused protesters of attacking the riot police, which he claimed provoked the police and led to beatings.
Editor’s Note: This report is part of the Investigative Hub project, within which the Kyiv Post monitors investigative reports in the Ukrainian media and brings them to the English-speaking audience, as well as produces original investigative stories. The project is supported by the National Endowment for Democracy.
