Ukrainian authorities on Friday announced an investigation into former National Bank governor Kiril Shevchenko for founding, together with his deputy, Denis Chernishov, a criminal organization involved in a scheme to carry out large-scale money laundering. to ease.
According to Ukraine’s National Anti-Corruption Bureau, the two leaders and a third suspect committed these crimes between 2014 and 2019, when they served on the board of directors of Ukraine’s public bank Ukrgazbank and before being appointed to respective positions in that Bank. institution.
Shevchenko and his subordinates and alleged accomplices allegedly falsified documents for 51 people and entities, allowing them to launder money of questionable origin and access those amounts without arousing suspicion.
The suspects will have received sums of money for providing these illegal services.
Shevchenko fled Ukraine in October 2022, already in the crosshairs of the country’s anti-corruption authorities. The former governor of the Central Bank is wanted by the Ukrainian judiciary.
The fight against corruption is one of the conditions for the European Union (EU) to start negotiations on Ukraine’s accession to the community bloc at the end of this year.
Ukraine formally applied for EU membership on 28 February 2022, four days after Russia invaded the country, and was granted candidate status in June of that year.
In recent months, authorities in Kiev have stepped up large-scale anti-corruption operations.
Source: DN
