Anti-graft agency detective, investigating Ukraine's largest corruption scandal, released from custody
Editor's note: The story is being updated.
The Kyiv Appeals Court ordered on Dec. 3 the release of Ruslan Mahamedrasulov, a detective with Ukraine’s National Anti-Corruption Bureau (NABU), who had been investigating the country's largest corruption case involving the state-run nuclear power monopoly Energoatom.
Mahamedrasulov, the head of a NABU detective unit, and his 65-year-old father, Sentyabr, were arrested by Ukraine’s Security Service (SBU) in July, a day before President Volodymyr Zelensky signed a law that that took away the independence of NABU and Specialized Anti-Corruption Prosecutor's Office (SAPO).
After protests in Kyiv and pressure from Western partners, the president signed a new bill on July 31, restoring the independence of these anti-corruption institutions.
"I want to thank everyone for their support. I felt it throughout the past five months," the NABU detective said after the court hearing.
Mahamedrasulov and his father were charged with collaborating with Russia for allegedly maintaining contacts with Moscow and serving as an intermediary in cannabis sales to the Russian republic of Dagestan.
Sentyabr Mahamedrasulov was released from custody and placed under nighttime house arrest on Dec. 2.
His son believed that the case was a political vendetta by the authorities for his role in Ukraine's biggest corruption case, investigating president Volodymyr Zelensky's associate and former business partner Timur Mindich.
The key controversy was that the audio recording at the center of the case is of poor quality. The critics of SBU, which is seen as loyal to the President's Office, and Mahamedrasulov's interlocutor in the recording argue that Uzbekistan, not Dagestan, is mentioned in the tape.
Mahamedrasulov's release comes just days after Andriy Yermak, also reportedly being implicated in a corruption scandal, was dismissed from his position as head of the President's Office.
Yermak's far-reaching powers and desire for control have been widely discussed among Ukrainian and foreign officials. Those who spoke with the Kyiv Independent have said with confidence that it was Yermak who pulled the trigger on the July attack against the country's anti-corruption institutions.
